Today's Favorite Verse: Joel 1:28

Today's Favorite Verse: Joel 1:28
"And it shall come to pass afterward, that I will pour out my spirit upon all flesh; and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, your old men shall dream dreams, your young men shall see visions:"

This is the time that we are living in.

When Moroni visited Joseph Smith he quoted this verse in Joel. I have wondered what other explanations and scriptures that couldn't be mentioned were told him? Surely, the instructions have been passed to us in other scriptures and in the temple, but it would have been interesting to know all that was covered that night.

"He also quoted the second chapter of Joel, from the twenty-eighth verse to the last. He also said that this was not yet fulfilled, but was soon to be. And he further stated that the fulness of the Gentiles was soon to come in. He quoted many other passages of scripture, and offered many explanations which cannot be mentioned here."
(Joseph Smith-History 1:41)

Day 4036

Today's Favorite Verse: Joel 3:11-12

Today's Favorite Verse: Joel 3:11-12

"Assemble yourselves, and come, all ye heathen, and gather yourselves together round about: thither cause thy mighty ones to come down, O LORD.

Let the heathen be wakened, and come up to the valley of Jehoshaphat: for there will I sit to judge all the heathen round about."

What stood out to me in these verses is the word heathen. I decided to look at its definition.

"a person who does not belong to a widely held religion (especially one who is not a Christian, Jew, or Muslim) as regarded by those who do."

"a person who does not know about and worship the God of the Bible : pagan. 2. : an uncivilized person."

"A person who has no religion and does not believe in anything spiritual. An atheist doesn't believe in God, but a heathen doesn't believe in anything. We are all rational and rebellious heathens here. (by extension) A wild or immoral person."

I cannot imagine being a heathen, and not only having no faith in God, but not believe in anything. That would be very empty. It made me think about the character of such a person. It seems every day I learn of more people leaving their churches and faiths behind them. I do not know if that also means they don't believe in anything? Are they an atheist or a heathen? It made me wonder how many children are being raised heathens now. That is really sad. No wonder so many kids are depressed. Then I remembered this and had hope for children that were never taught about God.

"And then shall the heathen nations be redeemed, and they that knew no law shall have part in the first resurrection; and it shall be tolerable for them."

(Doctrine and Covenants 45:54)

"And it shall be more tolerable for the heathen in the day of judgment, than for that house; therefore, gird up your loins and be faithful, and ye shall overcome all things, and be lifted up at the last day. Even so. Amen."

(Doctrine and Covenants 75:22)

Day 3038

Today's Favorite Verse: Joel 2:28-29

Today's Favorite Verse: Joel 2:28-29

"And it shall come to pass afterward, that I will pour out my spirit upon all flesh; and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, your old men shall dream dreams, your young men shall see visions:

And also upon the servants and upon the handmaids in those days will I pour out my spirit."

When the angel Moroni visited Joseph Smith, Jr. in 1823 he quoted Joel 28-32 and said it was not yet fulfilled, but was soon to be. (Joseph Smith-History 1:41) That was 200 years ago. I am reminded of what President Henry B. Eyring recently posted.

"There are many reading this today who feel a pressing need for a blessing of personal revelation from our loving Heavenly Father.

For those in a war-ravaged place in the world, it will be a desperate need to know whether to move their family to safety or whether to stay where they are. For many it’s praying to know how to help the Lord rescue a lost sheep.

We all know that human judgment and logical thinking will not be enough to get answers to the questions that matter most in life. We need revelation from God. And we will need not just one revelation in a time of stress, but we need a constantly renewed stream.

Heavenly Father hears your prayers. He loves you. He knows your name. Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and our Redeemer. I promise that He pours out revelation upon all of us through the Holy Ghost as we seek His guidance."

(President Henry B. Eyring, Facebook post 7/16/2023 at 9:00 am)

The thoughts of those now in war-ravaged places praying, and the wars spoken of in Joel, it feels like we are in the days prophesied.

Day 3037

Today's Favorite Verse: Joel 1:14-15

Today's Favorite Verse: Joel 1:14-15

"Sanctify ye a fast, call a solemn assembly, gather the elders and all the inhabitants of the land into the house of the LORD your God, and cry unto the LORD,

Alas for the day! for the day of the LORD is at hand, and as a destruction from the Almighty shall it come."

This made me reflect back on the last solemn assembly I attended. It was in the early days of the pandemic, in April 2020 on Palm Sunday. General Conference was all online. In the Saturday session we learned that a solemn assembly would be held in the Sunday morning sessions. It was held to commemorate the 200th anniversary of Joseph Smith's First Vision of the Father and the Son. In the darkest days of the pandemic participating in the solemn assembly and the Hosanna Shout brought a feeling of light into our home that has stayed there.

I don't know when the last solemn assembly will be called before the Lord's Second Coming. What I do know is that a prophet of God will lead us and we will have an added strength given us for those days.

Day 3036

Today's Favorite Verse: Joel 3:16-17

Today's Favorite Verse: Joel 3:16-17
"The Lord also shall roar out of Zion, and utter his voice from Jerusalem; and the heavens and the earth shall shake: but the Lord will be the hope of his people, and the strength of the children of Israel.
So shall ye know that I am the Lord your God dwelling in Zion, my holy mountain: then shall Jerusalem be holy, and there shall no strangers pass through her any more."

I pondered on how the Lord is in two very different places in this chapter. There is a difference between Zion and Jerusalem. Orson Pratt said, "Zion will be favored with the presence of the Lord before the Jews are permitted to behold him. The Lord will come to the Temple of Zion before he comes to the Temple at Jerusalem. Before he comes in the clouds of heaven with power and great glory, he will manifest himself in the city and Temple of Zion; or in other words all the pure in heart who are permitted in those days to enter into the Lord's Temple in Zion, which will be built on this continent, the Lord will reveal his face unto them, they will see him and he will dwell in the midst of Zion." (Orson Pratt, "Latter-Day Judgments", JD 15:337b) (See Doctrine & Covenants 97)

Day 1454

Today's Favorite Verse: Joel 2:1-2

Today's Favorite Verse: Joel 2:1-2
Blow ye the trumpet in Zion, and sound an alarm in my holy mountain: let all the inhabitants of the land tremble: for the day of the Lord cometh, for it is nigh at hand;
A day of darkness and of gloominess, a day of clouds and of thick darkness, as the morning spread upon the mountains: a great people and a strong; there hath not been ever the like, neither shall be any more after it, even to the years of many generations.

This chapter discusses the war and desolation that will precede the Second coming. In verse 11 is says "...for the day of the Lord is great and very terrible; and who can abide it?" The impression I received is to look for the hope. Then I saw where this chapter begins with the hope. I was reminded of President Russell M. Nelson's words of promise and warning.

"Our Savior and Redeemer, Jesus Christ, will perform some of His mightiest works between now and when He comes again. We will see miraculous indications that God the Father and His Son, Jesus Christ, preside over this Church in majesty and glory. But in coming days, it will not be possible to survive spiritually without the guiding, directing, comforting, and constant influence of the Holy Ghost. My beloved brothers and sisters, I plead with you to increase your spiritual capacity to receive revelation."
("Revelation for the Church, Revelation for Our Lives", April 2018 General Conference)

Following the prophet will prepare and protect us to be a great and strong people, with a spiritual capacity to receive revelation. Ready to withstand the days ahead.

Day 1453

Today's Favorite Verse: Joel 1:14-15

Today's Favorite Verse: Joel 1:14-15
"Sanctify ye a fast, call a solemn assembly, gather the elders and all the inhabitants of the land into the house of the Lord your God, and cry unto the Lord.
Atlas for the day! for the day of the Lord is at hand, and as a destruction from the Almighty shall it come."

My heart is so sad for so many terrible and sad things I have read and saw the last few days. I need to fast for all the grief and sorrow I see others going through. I want to go to the temple, and pray for them. But, my time table is not my own, because I am dependent on others helping me right now. Two weeks of not being able to go to the temple makes the news happening around me even harder to bare.                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                         

Hamilton, New Zealand Temple

Day 1452