Today's Favorite Verse: Acts 23:11

Today's Favorite Verse: Acts 23:11
"And the night following the Lord stood by him, and said, Be of good cheer, Paul: for as thou hast testified of me in Jerusalem, so must thou bear witness also at Rome."

There were certain Jews that vowed to neither eat or drink until they killed Paul. The chief captain had the soldiers bring him into the castle for his protection. It was that night that the Lord came to him. What must that have felt like for Paul to have confirmation from the Lord himself of how he had testified of Him? The last time the Lord visited him it was on the road to Damascus.

It reminded me of Alma the younger, and how the same angel appeared twice to him. First, when he was with the sons of Mosiah going about to destroy the church. The angel appeared and told him to stop trying to destroy the church or he would be cast off.

"Now I say unto thee: Go, and remember the captivity of thy fathers in the land of Helam, and in the land of Nephi; and remember how great things he has done for them; for they were in bondage, and he has delivered them. And now I say unto thee, Alma, go thy way, and seek to destroy the church no more, that their prayers may be answered, and this even if thou wilt of thyself be cast off.
And now it came to pass that these were the last words which the angel spake unto Alma, and he departed."
(Mosiah 27:16-17)

The second time the angel appeared it was when Alma was preaching in the city of Ammonihah and had been cast out. Interesting that the messages for both Paul and Alma are to have cheer, and rejoice there is more work to do.

"And it came to pass that while he was journeying thither, being weighed down with sorrow, wading through much tribulation and anguish of soul, because of the wickedness of the people who were in the city of Ammonihah, it came to pass while Alma was thus weighed down with sorrow, behold an angel of the Lord appeared unto him, saying:
Blessed art thou, Alma; therefore, lift up thy head and rejoice, for thou hast great cause to rejoice; for thou hast been faithful in keeping the commandments of God from the time which thou receivedst thy first message from him. Behold, I am he that delivered it unto you."
(Alma 8:14-15)

Day 4165

Today's Favorite Verse: Psalms 96:11-13

Today's Favorite Verse: Psalms 96:11-13
"Let the heavens rejoice, and let the earth be glad; let the sea roar, and the fulness thereof.
Let the field be joyful, and all that is therein: then shall all the trees of the wood rejoice
Before the LORD: for he cometh, for he cometh to judge the earth: he shall judge the world with righteousness, and the people with his truth."

I pondered on how the rejoicing and joy came before the Lord comes. That as terrible as the world is becoming, and Satan is truly in his great day of power, that should not overcome us. That the focus and joy is we are all the closer to the Lord's second coming. I haven't reached the point that I am praying day and night for His return, but I'm getting close to it. I just have peace that this is all in His hands. "He's Got the Whole World in His Hands."

Day 3934

Today's Favorite Verse: Alma 28:12

Today's Favorite Verse: Alma 28:12
"While many thousands of others truly mourn for the loss of their kindred, yet they rejoice and exult in the hope, and even know, according to the promises of the Lord, that they are raised to dwell at the right hand of God, in a state of never-ending happiness."

Before I read scriptures tonight I was watching news on horrific hurricane Helene and its devastating path of destruction. I watched this one interview with a women who lost her parents and seven year old son. I was so moved on her and her sister's faith and belief in God and how he has and will get them through this. In their sorrow, they rejoiced in the Lord. It was so inspiring. I found the video again so I could share it.

"In the midst of the chaos, all I heard was God telling me to be still and to stop fighting the water," Drye recalled. "That was Him, that was prayers. That was prayers that told me to be still and to let the water carry me to where I needed to be rescued."
"When I did let go, I heard the voice say, 'You still don't fight the water' and then I ended up in between the two carriers that stuck with me the whole time," she said.
She was then spotted by a man and then tended to by a rescue team."
("Asheville mother recounts last moments with son before he was swept away by Helene floods: ‘He became my hero’, Fox Weather, October 1, 2024)

"Be still, and know that I am God: I will be exalted among the heathen, I will be exalted in the earth."
(Psalms 46:10)

"Therefore, let your hearts be comforted concerning Zion; for all flesh is in mine hands; be still and know that I am God."
(Doctrine and Covenants 101:16)

Day 3472

Today's Favorite Verse: Proverbs 24:17

Today's Favorite Verse: Proverbs 24:17

"Rejoice not when thine enemy falleth, and let not thine heart be glad when he stumbleth:"

It has to be wickedness in the heart to rejoice when the someone falls. This made me think of Mormon as he witnessed the destruction of his civilization.

"And my heart did sorrow because of this the great calamity of my people, because of their wickedness and their abominations..."

(Mormon 2:27)

That is probably going to be the hardest thing we will endure in these final days, witnessing the destruction of the wicked, because they are still our brothers and sisters. We cannot harden our hearts and withhold love and charity. As with Mormon there were times he was told not to lead them, or preach to them. Other times he was counseled to do so. There is such a need to be close to the spirit during these times. Always Mormon spoke of his love for them and he mourned for them in the very end.

"O ye fair ones, how could ye have departed from the ways of the Lord! O ye fair ones, how could ye have rejected that Jesus, who stood with open arms to receive you!

Behold, if ye had not done this, ye would not have fallen. But behold, ye are fallen, and I mourn your loss."

Mormon 6:17-18)

"The second attitude adjustment is to not allow ourselves to find satisfaction in calamities of the last days. Sometimes we tend to take joy in seeing the natural consequences of sin unfold. We might feel some vindication for being ignored by most of the world and persecuted and berated by others. When we see earthquakes, wars, famines, disease, poverty, and heartbreak, we may be tempted to say, “Well, we warned them. We told them a thousand times not to engage in those activities.”

"Our forgiveness must be manifest by reaching out to help mend wounds even when they are the result of transgression. To react in any other way would be akin to setting up a lung cancer clinic for nonsmokers only. Whether the pain has come to someone who is completely innocent or is something of his own making is irrelevant. When a person has been hit by a truck, we don’t withhold our help even when it is obvious he didn’t stay in the pedestrian lane."

(Glenn L. Pace, "A Thousand Times", Oct 1990 General Conference)

Day 2811

Today's Favorite Verse: Genesis 46:29

Today's Favorite Verse: Genesis 46:29-30

"And Joseph made ready his chariot, and went up to meet Israel his father, to Goshen, and presented himself unto him; and he fell on his neck, and wept on his neck a good while.

And Israel said unto Joseph, Now let me die, since I have seen thy face, because thou art yet alive."

I just love this part of the story when Jacob and Joseph are reunited. I suppose if I can mourn with those that mourn, I can also rejoice with those that rejoice.

Day 2205

Today's Favorite Verse: Genesis 17:17-18

Today's Favorite Verse: Genesis 17:17-18

"Then Abraham fell upon his face, and laughed, and said in his heart, Shall a child be born unto him that is an hundred years old? and shall Sarah, that is ninety years old, bear?

And Abraham said unto God, O that Ishmael might live before thee!"

I had to look at the footnote on these verses because it didn't sound like the way a man of God would react when the Lord told him such wonderous news. I found that it wasn't, and this sounds more like Abraham to me.

"Then Abraham fell on his face and rejoiced, and said in his heart, There shall a child be born unto him that is an hundred years old, and Sarah that is ninety years old shall bear.

And Abraham said unto God, Oh that Ishmael might live uprightly before thee!"

(JST, Genesis 17:23-24)

Day 2176

Today's Favorite Verse: Ezekiel 35:13-14

Today's Favorite Verse: Ezekiel 35:13-14
"Thus with your mouth ye have boasted against me, and have multiplied your words against me: I have heard them.
Thus saith the Lord God; When the whole earth rejoiceth, I will make thee desolate."

This verse made me think of the mural in the Washington D.C. Temple. Where at final judgment every knee will bow and confess that Jesus is the Christ. Either it will be time of rejoicing or a time of dread. I cannot speak against God and mock him without one day paying the price that comes with it.

"That at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of things in heaven, and things in earth, and things under the earth;
And that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father."
(Philippians 2:10-11)

Day 1412