Pondering Enlightenment
I have has several moments of ponder this week. As I reflect upon those moments today, I have learned that I do not have a large social network outside of my home and church. I could say that I have a large group of contacts from work, but not always on a personal level. When I meet with them, it is always work related.
That being said, I have accepted three invitations this week and not done more than pray about pray about two of them. The third has brought great joy into my week, but only reminds me that I need to work on the other two as well. I guess I need to change my prayers and be a little more faithful. Really, I need to get out of the house more. That is one thing that I don't like about working from home. I don't get out much. I will work on it.
As a wise person always tells me, Any who...lets talk about some of the pondering. Over the past several months, I have done my best to establish a normal routine of study. I don't always have a specific time to study, but I know what sources I want to study from to prepare me for my week. I realized this week that I needed to re-introduce a specific source more routinely into my plan, instead of incorporating it in bits and pieces from the other sources. I have found great joy in that. My personal study journal has taken be back to Alma. I have been in chapter 19 and 20 this week. I have not read a lot, but I have studied, pondered, and prayed a great deal. The instruction has been deep. My pondering goes around these two chapters a great deal.
First, I did a little character analysis of Ammon at one point this week. I am amazed and enlightened by the power of the Atonement as I read his history. Last week I mentioned something about hearing the words and not just feeling the message of the words. Ammon clearly heard the words. However, at the point we are reading about him in Chapters 19 and 20, think about where Ammon has come from. He was a rebellious youth. He did everything he could do NOT to follow what his parents wanted him to do. In fact, we are lead to believe he did everything he could to fight them on it and those who associated with his parents beliefs and desires.
Then an angel came along. I know, that sound pretty miraculous, but maybe that is the vision we put into our own heads. What if it was not so miraculous to those around them, but had the power to shake the world of Ammon and those around him alone. When I think about angels, I think of those who are speaking by the power of the Holy Ghost. What this angel just an ordinary guy who was listening/hearing the words of God. When Ammon/Alma and company came along rebuking, teasing, harassing, or fighting against those who believed as their parents, this brother/sister/angel stood up, with the power of God, and rebuked them. Was it any different that Nephi calling his brothers to repentance on the shores of the great sea? This angel spoke with such faith and power, like Nephi, that it brought them to their knees. We have the same gift, we just have to exercise the same faith. Ponder 1.
I then went on to think about Ammon's state of mind. Well not just Ammon, but all of us. Something changed. Suddenly, Ammon had a desire to be different. He had made mistakes, had a dark past he was now ashamed of, and wanted to be different. We read the words, but do we really hear the message. Do you think it was an easy process for him/them/us to change over night? I don't think so. There were habits that needed to be broken. They had to change the way they thought and acted, not a task that happens over night. They had to mix up their daily routines, replace the bad habits with good, evaluate those people, places, and things they associated with. Did they match the new desires in their hearts? If not, they were abandon/forsaken, again, not something that is done over night.
Now think about the mental issue of it all. What did Ammon think of himself. Do you think it was easy to get up everyday, knowing that he had made mistakes. Sound familiar? He was no different than any of us, but we can see the Atonement in his life. It is in ours as well. I read a quote from Elder Joe J. Christensen this week, " There are those who wake up every morning dreading to go to school, or even to church activity..." My thoughts here, we could probably make the list even longer than school and church activities: work, grocery stores, dates, hanging with friends, anything outside of our beds really. "...because they worry about how they will be treated." Me again, do we do the same thing in our minds. We worry about how they will not only treat us, but what they will think of us. Do we create that treatment or those thoughts in our head and magnify them 1000 times greater than they really are? Ok back to Elder Christensen. Ammon had to do this as well. "...You have the power to change..." This is called the Atonement. That power is there, but Elder Christensen made me think differently. Up until this point I was thinking about myself and how I was like that, then his words made me realize that there are others just like me and he was saying, "...You have the power to change THEIR lives for the better.
...The Lord is counting on you to be a builder and give them a lift. Think less of yourself and more about the power you have to assist others, even those within your own family"
WOW! I have to stop worrying about my past and start focusing on my future. Ammon had to do the same thing. The Atonement is real. It is not easy. God forgives. Christ has paid. Now we need to forgive ourselves, stop wallowing in the mire, and follow the new desire to help lift and change the lives of others. That is what Ammon did. He stopped thinking about himself and started thinking about others. Instead of worrying about what/how other think of us, annoy us, burden us, or judge us, think about ways you can help them be better. Look to see how you can help them grow, rise, and inspire others. See them as Christ see them. In doing so, you will see you as Christ see you. I think we will learn that we really are not that different from each other. We have all made mistakes and we are all trying to apply the Atonement in our personal lives. Ponder 2.
OK, I know I am long winded today, but here is the next one. Hope you will endure with me. Read Alma 19:31-36. There is a great deal of extra here, but lets focus on the stuff that applies to us. Ammon, King Lamoni, the Queen, their servants, even Abish all had the desire to change. They had all been touched by an angel of some sort. Note Ammon was an angel to Lamoni, his servants, and the maybe even the Queen. We can be angels, even after making mistakes, we just need to apply the Atonement to our lives.
Any who, they now have the desire to be better. They are looking for ways to lift others. They...verse 31..."go forth...rebuke them.." (those who content with them, but more importantly) "...and to teach them the WORDS, which he had HEARD..." Sound familiar?
Those that HEARD, believed and were converted. However, keep reading, verse 32. "There were many among them who would not HEAR...they went their way." Though we want to be that angel, we have to understand that people have their agency. If we keep reading in verse 33. Lamoni has not succeed with them, but then Ammon arose and administered unto them as did the servants of Lamoni. The work continues on. Lamoni planted seeds. Ammon planted seeds. Some day, down the road, the continual administration unto this people sparked growth of those seeds. Many were touched. I like the beginning of verse 36: "thus the work of the Lord did commence among the.." It does not end. It is the Lord's work. We are just part of it. Ponder 3.
Can I do one more? You can come back to it later if you are tired. Print it out and read it later. Chapter 20. Lamoni wants to take Ammon to the Land of Nephi, but Ammon heard the voice of the Lord. Why do you think he did? My thoughts were taken to 2 Nephi 32:9. I am reminded that we need to make the Lord a part of all our actions. We need to pray always, seeking to do his will and petition him to consecrate our performances, even the most simple things of our lives. Ammon was asked to do something, in his heart, he asked the Lord. Whether we HEAR the words or just feel the intent of the message, we need to be like Ammon, seeking the Lord's blessing each morning as we plan our days. He hears and speaks to us. I know this. Ponder 4.
OK, ask me about water later.
It has been a good week. Thank you for the invitation. I needed it.
The Queen and I have just been working. I think we both realized today, as the Sister missionaries asked us about the challenge they left us last week, that we need to expand our social networking, even when it is outside of our comfort zones. Maybe we need to change the way we pray. We are promised the Lord will intervene if we invite him and ask him to consecrate our efforts.
The Professor did a full blown week of activities at school, calling, institute, and then took an aero plane into the blue yonder to visit friends. We hope she is having a good time and look forward to being able to report next week. She really packs her days and evenings as of late.
Tall Man is making the preparations to change rooms again. This room is a little further away than across the hall. It has been on his mind a great deal as well as all the new responsibilities of his new job title. He appears to be handling it well. We hope that he will continue to share the events of his life with us so we can keep you informed.
SnackPack is preparing for State, Tour, and opening the Pool. The coming weekend will be filled with Polo and such. He spent the week in training how to get wet. They had to move indoors as the rain hindered the outdoor abilities. The pool has not opened once this weekend, but every time they decide to close, the clouds break and the sun shine bright with blue skies. It is crazy.
The weekly update was short, hope my wordy thoughts did not overwhelm or annoy you, until the next time.
Cheerio!
That being said, I have accepted three invitations this week and not done more than pray about pray about two of them. The third has brought great joy into my week, but only reminds me that I need to work on the other two as well. I guess I need to change my prayers and be a little more faithful. Really, I need to get out of the house more. That is one thing that I don't like about working from home. I don't get out much. I will work on it.
As a wise person always tells me, Any who...lets talk about some of the pondering. Over the past several months, I have done my best to establish a normal routine of study. I don't always have a specific time to study, but I know what sources I want to study from to prepare me for my week. I realized this week that I needed to re-introduce a specific source more routinely into my plan, instead of incorporating it in bits and pieces from the other sources. I have found great joy in that. My personal study journal has taken be back to Alma. I have been in chapter 19 and 20 this week. I have not read a lot, but I have studied, pondered, and prayed a great deal. The instruction has been deep. My pondering goes around these two chapters a great deal.
First, I did a little character analysis of Ammon at one point this week. I am amazed and enlightened by the power of the Atonement as I read his history. Last week I mentioned something about hearing the words and not just feeling the message of the words. Ammon clearly heard the words. However, at the point we are reading about him in Chapters 19 and 20, think about where Ammon has come from. He was a rebellious youth. He did everything he could do NOT to follow what his parents wanted him to do. In fact, we are lead to believe he did everything he could to fight them on it and those who associated with his parents beliefs and desires.
Then an angel came along. I know, that sound pretty miraculous, but maybe that is the vision we put into our own heads. What if it was not so miraculous to those around them, but had the power to shake the world of Ammon and those around him alone. When I think about angels, I think of those who are speaking by the power of the Holy Ghost. What this angel just an ordinary guy who was listening/hearing the words of God. When Ammon/Alma and company came along rebuking, teasing, harassing, or fighting against those who believed as their parents, this brother/sister/angel stood up, with the power of God, and rebuked them. Was it any different that Nephi calling his brothers to repentance on the shores of the great sea? This angel spoke with such faith and power, like Nephi, that it brought them to their knees. We have the same gift, we just have to exercise the same faith. Ponder 1.
I then went on to think about Ammon's state of mind. Well not just Ammon, but all of us. Something changed. Suddenly, Ammon had a desire to be different. He had made mistakes, had a dark past he was now ashamed of, and wanted to be different. We read the words, but do we really hear the message. Do you think it was an easy process for him/them/us to change over night? I don't think so. There were habits that needed to be broken. They had to change the way they thought and acted, not a task that happens over night. They had to mix up their daily routines, replace the bad habits with good, evaluate those people, places, and things they associated with. Did they match the new desires in their hearts? If not, they were abandon/forsaken, again, not something that is done over night.
Now think about the mental issue of it all. What did Ammon think of himself. Do you think it was easy to get up everyday, knowing that he had made mistakes. Sound familiar? He was no different than any of us, but we can see the Atonement in his life. It is in ours as well. I read a quote from Elder Joe J. Christensen this week, " There are those who wake up every morning dreading to go to school, or even to church activity..." My thoughts here, we could probably make the list even longer than school and church activities: work, grocery stores, dates, hanging with friends, anything outside of our beds really. "...because they worry about how they will be treated." Me again, do we do the same thing in our minds. We worry about how they will not only treat us, but what they will think of us. Do we create that treatment or those thoughts in our head and magnify them 1000 times greater than they really are? Ok back to Elder Christensen. Ammon had to do this as well. "...You have the power to change..." This is called the Atonement. That power is there, but Elder Christensen made me think differently. Up until this point I was thinking about myself and how I was like that, then his words made me realize that there are others just like me and he was saying, "...You have the power to change THEIR lives for the better.
...The Lord is counting on you to be a builder and give them a lift. Think less of yourself and more about the power you have to assist others, even those within your own family"
WOW! I have to stop worrying about my past and start focusing on my future. Ammon had to do the same thing. The Atonement is real. It is not easy. God forgives. Christ has paid. Now we need to forgive ourselves, stop wallowing in the mire, and follow the new desire to help lift and change the lives of others. That is what Ammon did. He stopped thinking about himself and started thinking about others. Instead of worrying about what/how other think of us, annoy us, burden us, or judge us, think about ways you can help them be better. Look to see how you can help them grow, rise, and inspire others. See them as Christ see them. In doing so, you will see you as Christ see you. I think we will learn that we really are not that different from each other. We have all made mistakes and we are all trying to apply the Atonement in our personal lives. Ponder 2.
OK, I know I am long winded today, but here is the next one. Hope you will endure with me. Read Alma 19:31-36. There is a great deal of extra here, but lets focus on the stuff that applies to us. Ammon, King Lamoni, the Queen, their servants, even Abish all had the desire to change. They had all been touched by an angel of some sort. Note Ammon was an angel to Lamoni, his servants, and the maybe even the Queen. We can be angels, even after making mistakes, we just need to apply the Atonement to our lives.
Any who, they now have the desire to be better. They are looking for ways to lift others. They...verse 31..."go forth...rebuke them.." (those who content with them, but more importantly) "...and to teach them the WORDS, which he had HEARD..." Sound familiar?
Those that HEARD, believed and were converted. However, keep reading, verse 32. "There were many among them who would not HEAR...they went their way." Though we want to be that angel, we have to understand that people have their agency. If we keep reading in verse 33. Lamoni has not succeed with them, but then Ammon arose and administered unto them as did the servants of Lamoni. The work continues on. Lamoni planted seeds. Ammon planted seeds. Some day, down the road, the continual administration unto this people sparked growth of those seeds. Many were touched. I like the beginning of verse 36: "thus the work of the Lord did commence among the.." It does not end. It is the Lord's work. We are just part of it. Ponder 3.
Can I do one more? You can come back to it later if you are tired. Print it out and read it later. Chapter 20. Lamoni wants to take Ammon to the Land of Nephi, but Ammon heard the voice of the Lord. Why do you think he did? My thoughts were taken to 2 Nephi 32:9. I am reminded that we need to make the Lord a part of all our actions. We need to pray always, seeking to do his will and petition him to consecrate our performances, even the most simple things of our lives. Ammon was asked to do something, in his heart, he asked the Lord. Whether we HEAR the words or just feel the intent of the message, we need to be like Ammon, seeking the Lord's blessing each morning as we plan our days. He hears and speaks to us. I know this. Ponder 4.
OK, ask me about water later.
It has been a good week. Thank you for the invitation. I needed it.
The Queen and I have just been working. I think we both realized today, as the Sister missionaries asked us about the challenge they left us last week, that we need to expand our social networking, even when it is outside of our comfort zones. Maybe we need to change the way we pray. We are promised the Lord will intervene if we invite him and ask him to consecrate our efforts.
The Professor did a full blown week of activities at school, calling, institute, and then took an aero plane into the blue yonder to visit friends. We hope she is having a good time and look forward to being able to report next week. She really packs her days and evenings as of late.
Tall Man is making the preparations to change rooms again. This room is a little further away than across the hall. It has been on his mind a great deal as well as all the new responsibilities of his new job title. He appears to be handling it well. We hope that he will continue to share the events of his life with us so we can keep you informed.
SnackPack is preparing for State, Tour, and opening the Pool. The coming weekend will be filled with Polo and such. He spent the week in training how to get wet. They had to move indoors as the rain hindered the outdoor abilities. The pool has not opened once this weekend, but every time they decide to close, the clouds break and the sun shine bright with blue skies. It is crazy.
The weekly update was short, hope my wordy thoughts did not overwhelm or annoy you, until the next time.
Cheerio!
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