Today's Favorite Verse: Exodus 10:13-14

Today's Favorite Verse: Exodus 10:13-14
"And Moses stretched forth his rod over the land of Egypt, and the LORD brought an east wind upon the land all that day, and all that night; and when it was morning, the east wind brought the locusts.
And the locusts went up over all the land of Egypt, and rested in all the coasts of Egypt: very grievous were they; before them there were no such locusts as they, neither after them shall be such."

I pondered on how the Lord uses the laws of nature for his mighty works. Are they any less miraculous because it could be a natural phenomenon? What I cannot doubt is the timing of all these things. Nor how selective some of these plagues were. It made me reflect on being thankful in all things.

"Thou shalt thank the Lord thy God in all things."
(Doctrine and Covenants 59:7)

"And he who receiveth all things with thankfulness shall be made glorious; and the things of this earth shall be added unto him, even an hundred fold, yea, more."
(Doctrine and Covenants 78:19)

Receiving all things in thankfulness doesn't exclude the bad that happens. I had a new understanding of this verse last week. I saw thankfulness in all things as recognizing no matter what the Lord is with me. He will be by my side come rain, hail or sunshine. If locust are devouring the earth I am thankful the Lord is with me as I pass through it. I am never alone. Receiving a hundred fold doesn't mean I will be rich in material things, but instead in spirit. I will come to know the Lord as I walk beside him.

Day 3766

Today's Favorite Verse: Genesis 35:5

Today's Favorite Verse: Genesis 35:5
"And they journeyed: and the terror of God was upon the cities that were round about them, and they did not pursue after the sons of Jacob."

It was the word "terror" that stood out to me. It reminded me of this verse where Zion is called terrible.

"And it shall be said among the wicked: Let us not go up to battle against Zion, for the inhabitants of Zion are terrible; wherefore we cannot stand."
(Doctrine and Covenants 45:70)

I looked for why Zion is called terrible and I found these two quotes.

"The priests of Christendom now say, “We cannot stand before this man,” and they warn their flocks to keep away from the Latter-day Saints. “Are you reading that ‘Voice of Warning?’ Lay it out of your hands and put it out of your houses, for it is a dangerous book. Put away from you their tracts and books, for they are dangerous; and keep away, keep away from those dangerous men that are turning the world upside down.” That is the cry throughout the world. What will be the cry when they come up against us and try the force of arms? It will be—“Let us not go up against Zion, for the people thereof are terrible: keep away, keep away.” The one cry follows in the wake of the other. What makes the people of Zion terrible? Answer: Strict honesty and integrity before God. That is what will bring the cloud by day and the shining of a flame of fire by night; and upon all the glory there shall be a defense. God will surround the people of Zion as it were with a wall of fire, and he will make bare his arm in the eyes of the nation that wars against her, and she will be like a beacon light to seafaring men; and men will come and bring their clothing and their treasures, and we shall have an abundant supply of such things. Let us take care of what we have, keep it clean and patch it up, take care of our sheep and raise all the flax and wool we can, and the Lord will make up the balance; and if we do right we shall find that we have an overflowing treasury of every good thing; which may God grant, for Christ's sake. Amen."
(Orson Hyde, "Opposition to the Gospel, Etc.", JD 6:53)

"For when the Lord shall appear he shall be terrible unto them, that fear may seize upon them, and they shall stand afar off and tremble."
(Doctrine and Covenants 45:74)

"Therefore he is gathering us here, that we may become like unto one body, being sanctified, and become, as another revelation says, “as fair as the sun, as clear as the moon, that the banners of my people may be terrible unto all the nations of the earth. Why terrible? Because of the power of the Lord which will be in the midst of his people, because of the manifestations of heaven unto his people, because the nations will hear that God is indeed in the midst of Zion. They will hear all these things, and the wicked will fear and tremble. They will fear because of their iniquity; fear and tremble, because of their wickedness; fear and tremble, because they have supported all manner of wickedness and corruption, division and strife, and abominations of every kind in their midst. Therefore fearfulness will seize upon them, and they will know of a surety that the Lord God is in the midst of the people of Zion, that his power is there, that his spirit is there, and that he manifests himself there in great glory. Amen."
(Orson Pratt, "The Priesthood, Etc.", JD 18:362)

I think its not so much the actions of Zion make her terrible, it's because the presence of the Lord is with her.

"And the day shall come when the nations of the earth shall tremble because of her, and shall fear because of her terrible ones. The Lord hath spoken it. Amen."
(Doctrine and Covenants 64:43)

"And, now, behold, if Zion do these things she shall prosper, and spread herself and become very glorious, very great, and very terrible.
And the nations of the earth shall honor her, and shall say: Surely Zion is the city of our God, and surely Zion cannot fall, neither be moved out of her place, for God is there, and the hand of the Lord is there;"
(Doctrine and Covenants 97:18-19)

"But first let my army become very great, and let it be sanctified before me, that it may become fair as the sun, and clear as the moon, and that her banners may be terrible unto all nations;"
(Doctrine and Covenants 105:31)

Day 3757

Today's Favorite Verse: Doctrine & Covenants 30:1

Today's Favorite Verse: Doctrine & Covenants 30:1
"Behold, I say unto you, David, that you have feared man and have not relied on me for strength as you ought."

I pondered on fearing man. I thought about how the fear of the Lord is really love and respect for Him, not trembling that you will be punished. You follow Him because you want to be like Him. On that same thread the fear of man could also be our love, respect and worship of a man instead of God. You rely on their wisdom and strength, instead of the Lord being your strength.

"The fear of man bringeth a snare: but whoso putteth his trust in the LORD shall be safe."
(Proverbs 29:25)

Day 3619

Today's Favorite Verse: 2 Chronicles 12:14

Today's Favorite Verse: 2 Chronicles 12:14

"And he did evil, because he prepared not his heart to seek the LORD."

This made me think of President Nelson's general conference talk that I listened to this morning.

"The voices and pressures of the world are engaging and numerous. But too many voices are deceptive, seductive, and can pull us off the covenant path. To avoid the inevitable heartbreak that follows, I plead with you today to counter the lure of the world by making time for the Lord in your life—each and every day.

If most of the information you get comes from social or other media, your ability to hear the whisperings of the Spirit will be diminished. If you are not also seeking the Lord through daily prayer and gospel study, you leave yourself vulnerable to philosophies that may be intriguing but are not true. Even Saints who are otherwise faithful can be derailed by the steady beat of Babylon’s band.

My brothers and sisters, I plead with you to make time for the Lord! Make your own spiritual foundation firm and able to stand the test of time by doing those things that allow the Holy Ghost to be with you always. "

(Russell M. Nelson, "Make Time for the Lord", Oct 2021 General Conference)

Day 2538

Today's Favorite Verse: 1 Chronicles 10:13-14

Today's Favorite Verse: 1 Chronicles 10:13-14

"So Saul died for his transgression which he committed against the LORD, even against the word of the LORD, which he kept not, and also for asking counsel of one that had a familiar spirit, to inquire of it;

And inquired not of the LORD: therefore he slew him, and turned the kingdom unto David the son of Jesse."

This made me think of not only the importance of keeping the word of the Lord, but turning to Him for counsel also. When we seek for the counsel of the world and follow it there is real danger. We cannot serve two masters.

"No servant can serve two masters: for either he will hate the one, and love the other; or else he will hold to the one, and despise the other. Ye cannot serve God and mammon.

And he said unto them, Ye are they which justify yourselves before men; but God knoweth your hearts: for that which is highly esteemed among men is abomination in the sight of God."

(Luke 16:13, 16)

Day 2507

Today's Favorite Verse: Numbers 8:3-4

Today's Favorite Verse: Numbers 8:3-4

"And Aaron did so; he lighted the lamps thereof over against the candlestick, as the Lord commanded Moses.

And this work of the candlestick was of beaten gold, unto the shaft thereof, unto the flowers thereof, was beaten work: according unto the pattern which the Lord had shewed Moses, so he made the candlestick.

This made me think of following the prophet, for he does receive the will, mind, word and voice of the Lord.

"And whatsoever they shall speak when moved upon by the Holy Ghost shall be scripture, shall be the will of the Lord, shall be the mind of the Lord, shall be the word of the Lord, shall be the voice of the Lord, and the power of God unto salvation."

(Doctrine and Covenants 68:4)

Day 2284

Today's Favorite Verse: Moses 7:16,69

Today's Favorite Verse: Moses 7:16,69

"And from that time forth there was wars and bloodshed among them; but the Lord came and dwelt with his people, and they dwelt in righteousness.

And Enoch and all his people walked with God, and he dwelt in the midst of Zion; and it came to pass that Zion was not, for God received it up into his own bosom; and from thence went forth the saying, Zion is fled."

I learned something new about the city of Enoch reading this chapter. I didn't realized that the Lord actually dwelt with them there until Zion was taken up.

Day 2150

Today's Favorite Verse: 2 Samuel 3:1

Today's Favorite Verse: 2 Samuel 3:1
"Now there was long war between the house of Saul and the house of David: but David waxed stronger and stronger, and the house of Saul waxed weaker and weaker."

I pondered on how doors opened up to strength the house of David. The ripple effect of one single false claim against Abner turned his loyalty to David, and weakened Saul's son Ish-bosheth support.

This make me think of this scripture

"Now ye may suppose that this is foolishness in me; but behold I say unto you, that by small and simple things are great things brought to pass; and small means in many instances doth confound the wise."  (Alma 37:6)

David in his youth was anointed by Samuel to be king over Israel. Over the years David must have wondered how it would all happen. After Saul's death David inquired of the Lord on where to go and was told Hebron. From there he was made king of Judah. I pondered on times when I know things are going to happen just not how they will happen. What I have to do is just trust in the Lord and the plan as it is given me. The Lord always has a better plan that what I can envision.

"Trust in the Lord with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding." (Proverbs 3:5)

Day 845

Today's Favorite Verse: Joshua 5:13-14

Today's Favorite Verse: Joshua 5:13-14
"And it came to pass, when Joshua was by Jericho, that he lifted up his eyes and looked, and, behold, there stood a man over against him with his sword drawn in his hand: an Joshua went unto him, and said unto him, Art thou for us, or for our adversaries?
And he said, Nay; but as captain of the host of the Lord am I now come. And Joshua fell on his face to the earth, and did worship, and said unto him, What saith my lord unto his servant?"

At first I misread this and thought Joshua worshiped the angel. But then when he said "What saith my lord unto his servant?" I saw that he wasn't. He knew the angel would speak the words of Christ. That is where his heart was. It made me sit and ponder on what I would do if I saw an angel. Would I worship the angel or the message I know he brought from the Lord's lips? An angel of God can only speak the words of Christ, so if an angel were to have me worship the angel then I know if wouldn't be of God.

I felt impressed to go back and look at a recorded event that happened 100 years ago this year in another faith, that actually didn't sit right with me, but I couldn't figure out what was wrong when I heard it. I read some quotes given from the apparition.

Now I understand what didn't sit right with me. The apparition was wanting people to worship them and not Christ. Anything that comes and does not testify of the divinity of Christ and worship only him, is not of him. Reading this event again and seeing it in these eyes just left me a little horrified. That was not a religious event, it had all the hallmarks of a satanic one. Satan absolutely can quote scriptures, he can tell of coming events, and he can show great signs and wonders, to make people worship him, and not Christ.

"For there shall arise false Christs, and false prophets, and shall shew great signs and wonders; insomuch that, if it were possible, they shall deceive the very elect." (Matthew 24:24)

"For they are the spirits of devils, working miracles, which go forth unto the kings of the earth and of the whole world, to gather them to the battle of that great day of God Almighty." (Revelations 16:14)

The only way back to the presence of the Father is through Jesus Christ. Anything that teaches a different path is not of the Father.

"Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me." (John 14:6)


Day 767

Today's Favorite Verse: Joshua 4:24

Today's Favorite Verse: Joshua 4:24
"That all the people of the earth might know the hand of the Lord, that it is mightly: that ye might fear the Lord your God for ever."

Today I pondered on what it means to "fear the Lord".

I know I must fear the Lord, but yet at the same time Satan will motive by fear. So how do I reconcile what fear is?

The bible dictionary tells me, Fear can have two meanings:
(1) to fear God is to feel reverence and awe for Him and to obey His commandments
(2) to fear man, mortal dangers, pain, and evil is to be afraid of such things and to dread them.

I went through a scriptures looking up all the verses for "fear the Lord" and pondered on what they meant. These are some of my favorites.

"The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom: a good understanding have all they that do his commandments: his praise endureth for ever." (Psalm 111:10)

"The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge: but fools despise wisdom and instruction." (Proverbs 1:7)

"Ye that fear the Lord, trust in the Lord: he is their help and their shield." (Psalm 115:11)

"Bless the Lord, O house of Levi: ye that fear the Lord, bless the Lord."  (Psalm 135:20)

"Ye that fear the Lord, praise him; all ye the see of Jacob, glorify him; and fear him, all ye the seed of Israel."  (Psalm 22:23)

"Then shalt thou understand the fear of the Lord, and find the knowledge of God." (Proverbs 2:5)

"Be not wise in thine own eyes: fear the Lord, and depart from evil." (Proverbs 3:7)

"And now, Israel, what doth the Lord thy God require of thee, but to fear the Lord thy God, to walk in all his ways, and to love him, and to serve the Lord thy God with all thy heart and with all thy soul." ("Deuteronomy 10:12)

"And unto man he said, Behold, the fear of the Lord, that is wisdom; and to depart from evil is understanding." (Job 28:28)

"Saying with a loud voice, Fear God, and give glory to him; for the hour of his judgment is come: and worship him that made heaven, and earth, and the sea, and the fountains of waters." (Revelation 14:7)

"And behold, he spake unto us, as it were the voice of thunder, and the whole earth did tremble beneath our feet; and we all fell to the earth, for the fear of the Lord came upon us." (Alma 36:7)

"But it is they who do not fear me; neither keep my commandments but build up churches unto themselves to get gain, yea, and all those that do wickedly and build up the kingdom of the devil - yea, verily, verily, I say unto you, that it is they that I will disturb, and cause to tremble and shake to the center." (Doctrine & Covenants 10:56)

"And the spirit of the Lord shall rest upon him, the spirit of wisdom and understanding, the spirit of counsel and might, the spirit of knowledge and of the fear of the Lord;
And shall make him of quick understanding in the fear of the Lord: and he shall not judge after the sight of his eyes, neither reprove after the hearing of his ears: (Isaiah 11:2-3)

From pondering these over I think before I can love the Lord I must fear him. I must come to know His power and glory. All shall fear the Lord, the righteous and the wicked. The difference is in how I come to love, trust and reverence Him. As I keep his commandments he will reveal himself to me. His power and glory that will make men tremble will instead impart to me wisdom, knowledge, protection, and grace. I will come to understand I am as the dust of the earth beneath him. He is omnipotent, yet he loves me. I won't fall to the earth for fear of him, it will be to reverence Him.

In this chapter the fear of the Lord is to understand God's power.


Day 766

Today's Favorite Verse: Deuteronomy 32:37-38, 43

Today's Favorite Verse: Deuteronomy 32:37-38, 43
"And he shall say, Where are their gods, their rock in whom they trusted,
Which did eat the fat of their sacrifices, and drank the wine of their drink offerings? let them rise up and help you, and be your protection.
Rejoice, O ye nations, with his people: for he will avenge the blood of his servants, and will render vengeance to his adversaries, and will be merciful unto his land, and to his people."

I pondered on the ability of a false god to "rise up and help you, and be your protection". That is totally impossible. Satan only leads one deeper into hell. There is no protection or help that will come from him, or any arm of flesh.

Yet when I worship the Lord my God his arm will always be there to help lift me up. He will shield me from the fiery darts of the adversary. He is merciful, loving and kind. To worship the true God I am blessed beyond measure.


Day 760

Today's Favorite Verse: Deuteronomy 21:18, 20-21

Today's Favorite Verse: Deuteronomy 21:18, 20-21
"If a man have a stubborn and rebellious son, which will not obey the voice of his father, or the voice of his mother, and that, when they have chastened him, will not hearken unto them:
And they shall say unto the elders of his city, This our son is stubborn and rebellious, he will not obey our voice, he is a glutton, and a drunkard.
And all the men of his city shall stone him with stones, that he die: so shalt thou put evil away from among you; and all Israel shall hear, and fear."

This chapter had some serious punishment. I think this one topped it all for me. To see parents turn their child over to be stoned to death for being rebellious. I thought how could they do that? I also reflected that it is a good thing we don't practice this today, because there is so little respect for parents or people in authority in our society, there wouldn't be many children left. Then I realized this had something to do with the fifth command to honor our father and mother. This commandment has not been done a way with. There is implication today for me in this. Then the story of the prodigal son came to my mind. I sat and read it and then watched "The Prodigal Son" video in the "The Life of Jesus Christ Bible Videos" by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. The part of the son coming to himself and returning home touched my heart.

"And he arose, and came to his father. But when he was yet a great way off, his father saw him, and had compassion, and ran, and fell on his neck, and kissed him." (Luke 15:20)

I understood now why that father had compassion and ran to his son, while he was a great ways off. If he hadn't done that the elders of the city could have stoned him to death. For he was a glutton and a drunkard with his riotous living, and had not honored his mother and father. Under the mosaic law he was worthy of death.

So I reflected on this act of stoning, and turning the child over to the elders of the church. I felt impressed to look at the elders of the church as representing Christ. I have experienced turning a rebellious child over to the Lord, and this fits.  Though my child may have spiritual died, I needed to turn them over to the Lord for his keeping. I have left them in his hands to do as he see's fit. He knows what they must past through in order to "come to themselves".  For I know they will have no desire to see me until they have been made clean. Then I can run to them and throw our arms around them and kiss them, and rejoice. Until that day the Lord has sustained and carried me, and replaced my sorrow with peace in this matter.


Day 749