Today's Favorite Verse: Moses 3:1

Today's Favorite Verse: Moses 3:1
"Thus the heaven and the earth were finished, and all the host of them."

I wondered who "all the host of them" were? I started to look at the footnotes.

"And it came to pass that Adam, being tempted of the devil—for, behold, the devil was before Adam, for he rebelled against me, saying, Give me thine honor, which is my power; and also a third part of the hosts of heaven turned he away from me because of their agency;"
(Doctrine and Covenants 29:36)

The third part of the hosts of heaven were Satan and his angels, all those that rebelled against God and were cast out. So automatically some of these other hosts are the two-thirds of spirit children that would be worthy to come to earth and obtain physical bodies.

"Thus saith the Lord your God, even Jesus Christ, the Great I AM, Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the end, the same which looked upon the wide expanse of eternity, and all the seraphic hosts of heaven, before the world was made;"
(Doctrine and Covenants 38:1)

seraphic hosts = Seraphim
"Probably fiery beings. Angelic beings mentioned in the account of Isaiah’s vision (Isa. 6:2). They are represented as winged and partly human in form. They are attendants in Jehovah’s court, the ministers of the heavenly sanctuary, joining in adoration before the throne." (Bible Dictionary)

The spirits of man and the heavenly beings were all created before we can to this earth. This earth had a divine plan and purpose. It was not formed by accident.

"The Prophet Joseph Smith (1805–44) said: “Every man who has a calling to minister to the inhabitants of the world was ordained to that very purpose in the Grand Council of heaven before this world was. I suppose that I was ordained to this very office in that Grand Council” (Teachings of Presidents of the Church: Joseph Smith [2007], 511).
President Joseph Fielding Smith (1876–1972) taught: “The Lord informed Abraham that he had chosen rulers from among the intelligences that were organized, to be given in various capacities down the ages; and Abraham was one of these who was so chosen [see Abraham 3:22–23].“It is reasonable to believe that in the beginning, before the earth was prepared, the Lord would have all things organized from the beginning to the end of time. It is written in the scriptures: ‘Thus the heavens and the earth were finished, and all the hosts of them.’ This is equivalent to the Lord’s saying that everything was in preparation to be placed on the earth in its due course when mankind should be placed upon it” (Answers to Gospel Questions, comp. Joseph Fielding Smith Jr. [1966], 5:182).

(Pear of Great Price Student Manual, "Moses 3:1-25")

Day 3732

Today's Favorite Verse: 2 Nephi 30:16

Today's Favorite Verse: 2 Nephi 30:16
"Wherefore, the things of all nations shall be made known; yea, all things shall be made known unto the children of men."

I look forward to the day when "all things shall be made known".

"For there is nothing covered, that shall not be revealed; neither hid, that shall not be known."
(Luke 12:2)

"Yea, verily I say unto you, in that day when the Lord shall come, he shall reveal all things—
Things which have passed, and hidden things which no man knew, things of the earth, by which it was made, and the purpose and the end thereof—
Things most precious, things that are above, and things that are beneath, things that are in the earth, and upon the earth, and in heaven."
(Doctrine and Covenants 101:32-34)

Day 3401

Today's Favorite Verse: Proverbs 10:30

Today's Favorite Verse: Proverbs 10:30

"The righteous shall never be removed: but the wicked shall not inhabit the earth."

I pondered on how wickedness seems to be winning on the earth right now. Satan can revel in his glory for the moment. For there is no stopping the fact that the Lord, Jesus Christ will return. Then the wicked will be swept off the face of the earth, and the meek will inherit the earth.

"And he that liveth in righteousness shall be changed in the twinkling of an eye, and the earth shall pass away so as by fire.

And the wicked shall go away into unquenchable fire, and their end no man knoweth on earth, nor ever shall know, until they come before me in judgment."

(Doctrine and Covenants 43:32-33)

"And until that hour there will be foolish virgins among the wise; and at that hour cometh an entire separation of the righteous and the wicked; and in that day will I send mine angels to pluck out the wicked and cast them into unquenchable fire."

(Doctrine and Covenants 63:54)

"Blessed are the meek: for they shall inherit the earth."

(Matthew 5:5)

Day 2797

Today's Favorite Verse: Doctrine & Covenants 65:2

Today's Favorite Verse: Doctrine & Covenants 65:2

"The keys of the kingdom of God are committed unto man on the earth, and from thence shall the gospel roll forth unto the ends of the earth, as the stone which is cut out of the mountain without hands shall roll forth, until it has filled the whole earth."

What an amazing promise and responsibility. For the prophets of God to hold the keys of the kingdom of God until Christ reigns again upon the earth. Never to be taken. But the responsibility to carry the gospel forward to the whole world is overwhelming, when one contemplates it. It can only be done through the power of God. Even in the midst of a world-wide pandemic the temples, as the mountains of the Lord, are quietly being built and made ready for those that will fill and flow from them.

Day 2068

Today's Favorite Verse: Psalms 85:11

Today's Favorite Verse: Psalms 85:11
"Truth shall spring out of the earth; and righteousness shall look down from heaven."

This made me think of this.

"The ancient record thus brought forth from the earth as the voice of a people speaking from the dust, and translated into modern speech by the gift and power of God as attested by Divine affirmation, was first published to the world in the year 1830 as The Book of Mormon."
(Testimony of the Prophet Joseph Smith, Book of Mormon)

"And now, my beloved brethren, all those who are of the house of Israel, and all ye ends of the earth, I speak unto you as the voice of one crying from the dust: Farewell until that great day shall come."
(2 Nephi 33:13)

"For those who shall be destroyed shall speak unto them out of the ground, and their speech shall be low out of the dust, and their voice shall be as one that hath a familiar spirit; for the Lord God will give unto him power, that he may whisper concerning them, even as it were out of the ground; and their speech shall whisper out of the dust."
(2 Nephi 26:16}

"And thou shalt be brought down, and shalt speak out of the ground, and thy speech shall be low out of the dust, and thy voice shall be, as of one that hath a familiar spirit, out of the ground, and thy speech shall whisper out of the dust."
(Isaiah 29:4)

"The word of the Lord came again unto me, saying,
Moreover, thou son of man, take thee one stick, and write upon it, For Judah, and for the children of Israel his companions: then take another stick, and write upon it, For Joseph, the stick of Ephraim, and for all the house of Israel his companions:
And join them one to another into one stick; and they shall become one in thine hand.
And when the children of thy people shall speak unto thee, saying, Wilt thou not shew us what thou meanest by these?
Say unto them, Thus saith the Lord God; Behold, I will take the stick of Joseph, which is in the hand of Ephraim, and the tribes of Israel his fellows, and will put them with him, even with the stick of Judah, and make them one stick, and they shall be one in mine hand.
And the sticks whereon thou writest shall be in thine hand before their eyes.
(Ezekiel 37:15-20)

The stick of Judah and the stick of Joseph are now one in my hands. For the stick of Joseph was sealed up in the earth and has now come forth. As promised, prophets speak from the dust of the earth now speak truth to me.

Day 1138

Today's Favorite Verse: Job 38:4,6-7

Today's Favorite Verse: Job 38:4,6-7
"Where wast thou when I laid the foundations of the earth? declare, if thou hast understanding.
Whereupon are the foundations thereof fastened? or who laid the corner stone thereof;
When the morning stars sang together, and all the sons of God shouted for joy?"

Man has asked these questions since the beginning. Where did I come from? Where was I when the foundations of this world were created? How grateful I am that these questions are answered through revelation today. In the pre-existence I was with God the Father, raised as his spirit child in eternal mansions on high. I was part of the morning stars that sang together, and shouted for joy. Joy to know I would come to earth and obtain a body. To be tried and tested to gain experience. That a Savior would prepare the way for me, making it possible to return back to the Heavenly Father's presence again. I love the plan of salvation. How grateful I am for the veil of forgetfulness, and that I can live by faith.

I sat and listened to several video on God's plan of happiness. I found one I really liked and wanted to share.


As a personal invitation if you wish to know more about the plan of salvation or my faith please message me or visit: https://www.mormon.org/beliefs/plan-of-salvation

Day 1049

Today's Favorite Verse: Moses 2:2, 5, 14, 16, 18

Today's Favorite Verse: Moses 2:2, 5, 14, 16, 18

"And the earth was without form, and void; and I caused darkness to come up upon the face of the deep; and my Spirit moved upon the face of the water; for I am God.

And I, God, called the Light Day; and the darkness, I called Night; and this I did by the word of my power, and it was done as I spake; and the evening and the morning were the first day.

And I God, said: Let there be lights in the firmament of the heaven, to divide the day from the night, and let them be for signs, and for seasons, and for days and for years;

And I, God, made two great lights; the greater light to rule the day, and the lesser light to rule the night, and the greater light was the sun, and the lesser light was the moon; and the stars also were made even according to my word.

And the sun to rule over the day, and the moon to rule over the night, and to divide the light from the darkness; and I, God, saw that all things which I had made were good;"

In this chapter God reveals to Moses the creation of this earth. My, my, my, what an explosion of thought. I can only attempt to explain my thought process on it. I did so much pondering on light and darkness. The very first act of the creation of this earth was light and darkness and each stage of creation became one creation day, or period. Yet it isn't until the 4th day that the sun, the moon and the stars are created to rule over the light and darkness. This would be what I know as a period of 24 hours making a day. So I have to conclude that the light and darkness period called a creation day is not the same. Meaning God didn't complete the creation of the earth in 6 physical days of 24 hours. He created it in a period of light and darkness, called a day, which could be any length of time.

So now I pondered on what this light and darkness was. What did he put here first to make darkness? Was it the earth's spirit or some other thing? Then it came to me that the natural man is an enemy to God. So, is the darkness the natural earth? I know there are people that worship the earth or mother nature, leaving God out of their lives. What and who is mother nature? Then I thought about how the earth also needs to go through baptism of water and by fire, just like me. The baptism of water was during the great flood. The baptism of fire will happen at Christ's coming. What is the earth repenting of? Is it its natural element? 

I noticed for the first time the phrase repeated during the creation "And I, God, saw that all things which I had made were good."  It made me pause and ask myself "Is there a distinction of something here?" I had to wonder was someone or something else creating things too? So I wondered if the light period was the beginning of God's creation, and the darkness period was the natural earth's creation period. Was the natural earth an active participant in its own creation, similar to how a baby grows? Couldn't the creation periods be any length of time then? If that is true, than each creation period is called a day, because it went through a period of both light and darkness. I could then see how physical evidence on the age of this earth can completely go hand in hand with what God said he did when creating it. They fit. Even evolution fits (to a point) because there would have been a period of darkness after God's light.

There is so much, much more I pondered on over the creation. I know I am just seeing a tiny part of it. There is so much to learn by the spirit. I do love this earth. The natural part of it can be extremely powerful and destructive and cause much darkness and sadness. Though I think there is something here about not worshiping it. The part in God's hand is most glorious and light. I know I have much, much more to learn about this light and darkness, but I know all things come in time.

Day 561

Today's Favorite Verse: D&C 130:7-9

Today's Favorite Verse: Doctrine & Covenants 130:7-9

"But they reside in the presence of God, on a globe like a sea of glass and fire, where all things for their glory are manifest, past, present, future, and are continually before the Lord.

The place where God resides is a great Urim and Thummim. 

This earth, in its sanctified and immortal state, will be made like unto crystal and will be a Urim and Thummim to the inhabitants who dwell thereon, whereby all things pertaining to an inferior kingdom, or all kingdoms of a lower order, will be manifest to those who dwell on it; and this earth will be Christ's."

Today is my temple day and while I was sitting in an endowment session my mind wandered over the beauties of this earth. Then I thought of all the places I have never seen and probably will never get to. I had a sadness come over me as I always do when I think of such things. There is so much beauty in this earth and I would love to appreciate all of God's creation, but I know I will never have the money to travel and go there. I shall leave this earth and never have the chance in my body to know what it feels like to see a volcano, travel upon the vast ocean, or look down the grand canyon. Will the end times destruction erase the man made attractions I have never seen, like the Eiffel Tower or Disneyland? There is so much beauty on this earth and I know I will miss it. I recalled somewhere in the scriptures the earth being turned into glass and the thought made me sad to not see mountains, hills, streams and all that green. I even thought about little children born in abject poverty that never witnessed even the amount of beauty I have seen. I already felt bad, now I felt even worse for them. 

While I sat thinking about this a thought came to me "God doesn't take away, he gives you more." I didn't understand how glass could be more beautiful than the beauties of this earth. Then as my habit, after the session I went into the celestial room to settle in a favor chair and read my scriptures. What do you know, this chapter talked about the very thing my mind had been wondering on. That was no coincident, the spirit seems to like to teach me things this way. I learned the place where God resides is a great Urim and Thummin, a globe like a sea of glass and fire, where all things in their glory are manifest, past, present, and future, and are continually before him. One day I can live in such a place. I thought if my God can have anything he wants and he wants that, then it must be far better than what I have. 

What I hadn't recalled earlie was the part about the past, present and future continually before the Lord. I felt like I was being told, "See you won't miss anything. You will see far more than what the time of your life existence could have ever shown you. It will be presented in such away that will be more real than what is possible now. The poor among the earth that follow Christ will obtain celestial glory. It isn't less, it's more. When you loose your life for Christ's sake the return is a hundred fold." I know to some the sadness over not being able to travel may seem trivial to them. But, this experience has brought me such comfort and peace over the whole matter.

Day 549