Contemplating Moses 6:60

Contemplating Moses 6:60 today: For by the water ye keep the commandment; by the Spirit ye are justified, and by the blood ye are sanctified;

The clear meaning of baptism, Confirmation of the Gift of the Holy Spirit, and the Atonement of Christ opened a deeper meaning for me today. Water, Spirit, Blood (specifically the blood of Christ), these are all life flows. They are all necessary for the soul to BE.

The Water. the percentage of water in our bodies varies between 45%-78%. Infants have 78% at birth, then it drops to 65% by age 1. Fatty tissue contains less water, so the leaner you are the higher your water percentile. I say all that, just to point out the we are, in a way, full of water. In fact, we're water sacks. Water is one of three ways life exists. “Water” is then, a designation meaning “temporal”. The body is water. The Commandments are also temporal. We're given them as our part of the covenant with God. They are for this world. We didn't have them in Heaven, and we won't need them in Heaven when we return.

So by the water we keep the commandments. As we live in our temporal state, we covenant to obey the commandments.

The Spirit. In verse 61 of the same chapter we learn that the Holy Spirit is called the comforter, that which quickeneth all things, which maketh alive all things, that which knoweth all things, and hath all power according to wisdom, mercy, truth, justice, and judgment. From scripture we learn that we are Spirit children born of God. We also know from D&C 93:29 that we are eternal without beginning or end because we were intellegences before we were children. “Man was also in the beginning with God. Intelligence, or the light of truth, was not created or made, neither indeed can be.” We know that God's power (light) comes from the presence of God and fills the immensity of space. This light is in all things, gives life to all things, is the law by which all things are governed, IS the power of God. (D&C 88:12-13) I'm trying to explain that as intellegences we were a part of God's power. God's power fills the “immensity of space”. Intellegence, while having the ability to act for itself (D&C 93:30), always obeys God because He IS God.

The word “justify” actually means to align. When you make a line of type fit the page exactly, or when you level or square off, or make a straight line, you are justifying.

So by the Spirit, we align ourselves in our desires, in our desire to be with Him and be like him. Because we are justified, made straight, by our desire, the fact that we can't actually obey perfectly is not going to keep us down. We align our spirit to God's power and that is also a life flow.

The Blood. In the Bible dictionary we learn that Israel considered the blood as the seat of life, or vital energy of all flesh. The power of the sacrifices done anciently was in the blood because it was regarded as containing the life of the animal and, most importantly, was a type of the great Sacrifice who is Jesus Christ. (Lev 17:11, Heb 9:22). The Savior is the only true half God, half man, all others were stories corrupted from truth previously known. He said that he had power over his own life, to live or die, or live again. He had this power in his own blood. We know from modern revelation that glorified beings don't have our kind of blood. We know that if a person has a vision of God, he can't abide God in all His glory, or he would be immediately taken, changed to his immortal state. I'm guessing every cell in our bodies would be trying to align (justify) themselves to Him as we stood (knelt? laid?) in His presence.

So we are made pure and sanctified by the pure blood of our Savior, and our blood becomes as His.

All that just to say water spirit and blood are all life flows that are moving in one direction or the other depending on who/what we're following. Obey God, align yourselves with Christ, and follow Him into God's presence. I love you.

Mom

1 John 5:7-8 For there are three that bear record in heaven, the Father, the Word, and the Holy Ghost: and these three are one. 8 And there are three that bear witness in earth, the Spirit, and the water, and the blood: and these three agree in one.

4:20 am & still awake

A brief moment and then things end and new things begin, as in the birth of a child, so is the passing of a loved one.

Mom took her last breath at 12:30 am this morning. I was with her all evening. Her breathing was shallow and difficult for her. I said many prayers to let her go and I talked to her some. Mostly I just held her hand.

I told her a story about a handsome man named Sidney and his young bride Beatrice; how they had 5 boys but only one lovely daughter whom they adored and cherished. They named her Joyce, and she grew up to play the piano beautifully. At 17 she left home for college and there met a man who'd returned from the war. His name was Ben Slack. He was tall and had fiery red hair and sang like a master.  They fell in love and married. They named their first child, a girl, after her beloved father. She had four daughters to make up for never having had a sister, and two sons and she loved them all so much. They grew up and found eternal partners too and gave her so many grandchildren she could hardly keep track of them all. She was so blessed, but after Ben died, she missed him and was lonely. She met an old friend Grant Terry and they were married for a time, and she wasn't lonely for awhile. But he died too. Now it is Joyce's turn to follow. Ben is there, close by, waiting to take her as soon as she's ready to go.

Then I reminded her how much Ben adored, admired and loved her. I hope that I eased the way and helped her to think of him at the last.

I'll call everyone in the morning when its a decent time for telephone calls. But I just can't sleep and I needed to say it all out to my own children so they would know. We did our best for her, maybe she would have been better off in another environment, but we felt like we should care for her and we tried to make her as happy and comfortable as we could.

I'm so relieved for her, I can finally think of her again as I remember her, and I'm so glad for her. Thank God for His great plan of happiness.

I love each of you! Thank you for being who you are!

A Month Gone!

I just glanced at this page and was shocked to realize a month had gone by with no comment from me.
Three weeks ago I let Layne convince me I could run a 1/2 marathon. So training began. I've been gradually increasing the miles and occasionally working on improving speed. The bumber is that I am very sick and will miss my mid-week run this week. I'm determined that I'll still run on Saturday though. I am excited about doing this. I'm actually amazed at myself for believing that I can do it. that's new for me. The other crazy thing about this training it that I let Layne sign me up for the St. George Marathon in October too. I'm not totally convinced about that one, but I feel like if I can do this 1/2 in Bryce Canyon next July, that will be the confidence builder I need for the full.
Another wonderful thing this week was having Katrina come through on her way to her Writer's Conference. I was so happy to be with her. Thursday was the best day possible. Shayna and Katrina and their boys; a day of shopping and lunch, then a break-nap time and finally dinner and a movie. It was just perfect! Layne and I got to watch Katrina's boys, Sam and Layne James during Katrina's conference. I'm so glad we got to do that. The boys was awesome! I am just amazed at how advanced Sam is. Kudos to Katrina for making learning a fun adventure for him. He obviously loves reading and drawing. They are outlets for him, not work. Shayna was so much help too! I believe recognizing that Papa and NaNa are kinda old, she knew we'd need it. And of course, all the cousins had so much fun together. Sam couldn't get enough of Braxton. They were all adorable.
This weekend: Tim graduates with a master's degree in Graphic Design! I'm so proud of him! I can't even say how much. I always knew he was so talented! It's good to see him push to reach his goals.
My children are all grown ups now! I used to tell them that becoming an adult was inevitable but just because you get older doesn't mean you automatically become mature. That's a process that takes more than just time. but all of my children are truly maturing just as they should. They have all surpassed Layne and I in one way or another, and as a parent, nothing feels better than that.
I love you!

Yay! A Fun Show!

Hey, we got to go see Trevor in a Charlie Brown Musical! That was really fun!! Great Singing and fun acting. It flowed smoothly from scene to scene. Trevor was adorable, He was playing Linus, lot's of home-study  material there for him, as all three boys were right on the front row with their very own blankets and thumbs. You should have seen them dancing with their blankets after they saw their Daddy and the rest of the cast doing it on stage! Loved it.

All is well with us. Mom even laughed a couple of times through the show. Layne takes good care of her.

Hey guess what! I'm training for a half marathon! Yah, we'll see, right? But Shayna might do it too! It's in Bryce Canyon, which I've never been to. I'm excited!!

Sorry I haven't been writing every day like I was, it seemed kinda too much. I love you all with all of my heart!

Be good!!

Conference!

Papa and I are enjoying General Conference so far! Taking notes is helping me to focus and remember.

I'm excited about 3 new Temples. Papa couldn't believe there were enough people in the Boise area for putting one in Meridian. But little places grow sometimes.
I loved Elder Perry's remark that Christ was the only person with dual citizenship. That was cool. I'll try to keep the Sabbath Day better.
Sister Stevens' talk about children being our examples was beautiful. I'll try to "behold our little ones" a little better. When she talked about the eagerness to serve I thought of the little girl in my class that loves to carry all the books back to the library for me. They're too big for her and it's adorable to watch.
I want to be a better follower of Christ, like Brother Gonzalez said: to be more loving and to contemplate my covenants more.
Brother Richards talk was very much like Elder Holland's to our Stake two weeks ago. Through pain we learn patience and we learn of God's love. Pain brings us to Him. He is our Balm in Gilead. I loved that one so much.
Elder Cook was very kind in his remarks about the women of the Church, both past and present.
When Pres Eyring called the Welfare Program our Untied Order and the Law of Consecration, that rang so true. I'm so glad the Church is set up in this way! I loved that he outlined how to help others and how to build their dignity at the same time. That's so important.
I thought Pres Packer was strong and edgy. Good for him! I love that he's not afraid to be bold and clear in his message. Be a better Saint and let people know who we are and what we believe.
Elder Nielsen: I loved the line "We live to die and we die to live again" Beautiful. Oh yah, and "The only premature death is one who is not ready to meet his maker." Wow. Of course, right? Right! Oh yes! And his quote from Pres Monson; "Fear not. Be of good cheer. Your future is as bright as your faith". Love it!

Oh oh!! it's 10 am already!! We'll see you after conference!!

We love you!!!!

3-29-11

Just pluggin' away here. Staying on top of work things and thinking about others. I jogged 3 miles on Saturday and 2 yesterday. Faster was what I was working on yesterday! Its hard to not just be a plodder.

I'm trying to resolve that its ok to not lose anymore weight. My body is perfectly happy being 150lbs and I can't convince it to shed anymore. I've been eating so healthy too! But the good news is that I finally don't want or  crave the crap - well, except potato chips and ours are better than store-bought.

Papa feet are getting better. He bruised them up awhile back and they are just recovering to where he feels comfortable again. Did everyone read his comprehensive blog on over-eating and other things? That was a really good one.

Joyce is doing well. She seems to be rallying again and getting stronger. I don't know how much longer this will go on. But its a struggle for her and we try to make it as easy on here as we can.

We love you!!!

3-24-11

Rainy today! I'm so happy for the rain on our plants and trees. I'm happy that it's Thursday and I get to take tomorrow off and work on sketches for Katrina's poem! I'm happy that I got a yummy shake for breakfast! I'm happy I found my birth certificate so I can get a new license - I lost mine at Zion park last week! I'm

Activity Days went well yesterday and I got to just help the 3 new girls with their personal binders and get to know them a little better. They are all so cute! How can they all be so cute!!?

I pray for you all with all of my heart! Be good and pray always!!

I love you!!

A Truly Restful Day!

The weekend was so nice. We were so blessed to have Elder Jeffrey R Holland come and speak to us for the last two days. It was so awesome to see him speak with the Spirit to what we really needed to hear. I felt strengthened and encouraged. Then we had Shayna and Trevor over for a little dinner and wonderful singing and just relaxing. The kids were great and Trevor played the guitar and we just had fun.

I hope you each had a wonderful weekend of God's peace (not necessarily the quiet kind when theirs  kids in the house), and lots of love.

We love you~!!!!

Yay! Can't Wait!

I can't wait for this day I'm having!! Fun fun fun!! I get to spend time at the park with friends this morning - I signed up to help with concessions at a little league game, then it's a little weed pulling in the afternoon, followed by dress shopping with Shayna!! Yay! It sounds like a great day to me!
I hope you have a great day too!!

I love you!!!

Another Busy Day again!

It has been a good week so far. I've almost got the minutes finished and all the other little fusses at work have been manageable. Today I found out that I need to fill out permits to the Army Corp of Engineers for the City in order to get the work done to repair bridges and riprap, etc. The forms have been sitting on Pam's desk this whole time while I got all the paperwork in for FEMA. She never once mentioned them until she overheard me talking to the Mayor about ACE permits and that I had gotten the project manager's phone number and was trying to reach her to find out what we needed to do. Pam had not done anything with them and I don't know what she was thinking. Sheesh. Oh well, she has been really sick.

I got to go Visiting Teaching today to my Aunt Marion and to Marba Hale. As long as I got planning to take time and enjoy them both, I always have a good visit. They are older ladies and deserve to not be rushed, or so I have decided.

I hope you are all doing great! I love to hear from each of you!! I love you!!

I got to go

Monday, Minutes, and mummified fingers

The weekend went very well and even enjoyable, in spite of my worry. Company was fun and Mom was -- a little more stressed than usual, but not to the point that I worried about her, and the 9 yr old class was adorable as always. I can't remember how many more weeks I'm subbing for that, but not too many now.

Today I have minutes to work on and bills to pay for the City.... but it's very awkward to type with three fingers wrapped up like mummies. I burned them on the grease I was cooking with. Ice, Ice, baby.... kheehee. Seriously, if you keep the ice moving, you won't damage tissue, and it takes the burn out better and faster than anything else! If I'd not stopped with the ice and tried something else for awhile, I doubt I would have blistered at all.

Anyways, it didn't take the fun out of the evening. Thanks for coming over Shayna and Trevor!

Guess I better get started on this day!!


I love you!!!!

Sunday was nice!

It was a good day!! We've enjoyed Sidney and Rhoda and Rainey, Mom's been ok, though she has been a little antsy and had to leave Relief Society early.

I burned my fingers today frying potato chips for dinner. Ouch! But it's feeling better. This is just another lesson to me that i should stay out of the kitchen. keehee.

I love you!!

A Good Day.

Blair and Carol and 3 of their kids made it in last night. We got a sitter for Mom for today and took them all around Zion Park. We really had a blast with them! Aaron and Rebecca and David were all fun to be with and Carol has a knack for making everyone feel so comfortable with her. We really had a great time with them. They left mid afternoon to make it up to see their daughter Nicole.

Sidney, Rhoda and Rainey made it in around 8:00pm. They had a fun trip up being together, and I have been enjoying their banter this evening. I think this trip will be a good and productive one! They're staying until Tuesday morning.

Tomorrow is church, I've got 4 more weeks, I think with my 9 yr old class. I hope I can have the Spirit in there teaching the lesson. I do love those kids, but I never know what to expect and I somehow dread it until its over. That's not a reflection on them, I would just rather not have to work so hard, or more hard than I have to anyways. I really am comfortable having nothing to do. heehee.

I love you! I hope you have a wonderful Sabbath!

Thinking about family far away!!

It's so hard to be sitting safely by right now after hearing about the earthquake/tsunami in Japan and that wave heading for Hawaii and 20 other countries. I want to hear everything they're saying on the news, I want to know now that everyone is safe and alright!
I watched their clips of the tsunami sweeping over Sendai, I watched it hit a highway with cars that it swept away and I cried for them. I'm praying for everyone, and hoping for my loved ones. I know Aubrey and Adam are far inland and I know they are smart and doing all the right things. I know everyone is in God's hands and I trust Him. I love you all with all of my heart!!

Today is City Council, I feel just a little sick, headachy-sore throat-sinusy. Hopefully I'll feel better as the day progresses. I don't have a ton of things to do today so I'm ready for what comes.
Yesterday worked out just fine. The dinner was ok. I wasn't that pleased with it. We tried though. Laura and her two oldest grandkids are here until 3:00pm to visit Grandma Joyce. I hope they have a nice visit.

Yay for sunshine and blue skies!! It looks warm out there! I hope it is, I'll take a walk later.

I love you!!! Be good!!

Activity Days and Laura and her Grandchildren!

Today is a big day! We have Activity Days, where we're doing a fancy sit-down dinner to learn manners and etiquette, Also Laura and two of her grandchildren are coming down to see Mom! Some of my Activity Day girls have a Dance Festival at 6:00 that I'd like to go to as well, we'll see.

At work: I'm hoping to get all of the FEMA stuff done to turn in tomorrow, again, we'll see.

I hope you have a fun, productive day!!

I love you!!!

Yesterday was awesome!

I got a lot of good things done at work yesterday. The FEMA representative gave us a good jump on the paperwork he wanted. I should be able to get that done this week. I got 6 ordinances pdf-ed to the toquerville.org site, thanks for Papa's help. And Mayor came by and I think we're ready for City Council this Thursday.

Work was productive and all that, but the awesome part of the day was coming home to Papa playing with 3 cute little boys. We had so much fun together! And the day couldn't have ended any better than having Shayna and Trevor bring pizza home and having a little Family Home Evening together. It was just precious! Thank you for making that happen, Shayna and Trevor and Papa!! I love you!!Those were happy boys - Adorable!!!

This is the first day after the 60 day challenge and I feel a little liberated. I hope that I can keep doing all the good things but no pressure, right?

 I love you!! Have a happy day!!

March 7

I ran in the rain today - just a 1 1/2 but it wasn't too cold and it wasn't as hard as it's going now. Don't you love that when you get done and THEN it starts raining hard? It's like you knew, or you did something right, or... something.

Anyways, It's a good day and I"m happy to have things to do that are not on a timer, I'm going to work on the book I'm editing for CC and I'm going to scan ordinances and see if I can put them on the web.

I'm happy that I got to read and study some scripture stuff all weekend. It was a good, rejuvenating thing to do and I feel excited and ... increase(?). lol. I don't know, rejuvenated works, I guess, but it implies a "back to the beginning" kind of renewal thing, and I want to grow better. Oh well....

Now that the 60 day challenge is over, I'm going to decide if this daily thing is good or just too much.
I love you!! I hope you're all doing great!!!

Sunday and I think this challenge ends today or tomorrow!

I had a fun time yesterday hanging out with my sweet daughter Shayna. We just did some window shopping, mostly it was good to get out and move around. I spent most of the day studying scriptures. I had taken to on-line classes from Anthony Larson and wanted to get the background on what he proposed. Most of what he said, I already knew, there were just some things I had to check on, and I had one good "Ah HA moment, where I learned a cool thing, so it was definitely worth it. I'm just trying to obey Jesus' counsel in D&C 8878-79 to "be instructed more perfectly .... of tings both in heaven and in the earth and under the earth; things which have been, ..are,...(and) must shortly come to pass..."

This is the last week of the 60 day challenge, er, I guess tomorrow is the last day.

Daily

1.H2O

2. Ex 45 Mins

3. No Soda

4. No Sugar

5. 2 Fruit 2 Veggie

6. No nite food

7. Scripture5 15 Minutes

8. Diary

9.Praise daily

10. daily goals

Piano

11. sun 20 Min

12. Bed: 11:00pm Rise: 7:30am

02/28/11

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03/01/11

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03/06/11

FAST SUNDAY

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I 'm glad I did it. I think I'll keep it going somewhat, change it up a little and make the piano and guitar a bigger part of it. - I hope.

I love you!! Have a wonderful Sabbath!

Oh my! I missed yesterday!

I didn't realize that I hadn't posted yesterday until I got on to do today! Oh dear! Messing up in the last week of the 60 day challenge. But we can have one mess up per catagory and still count it, so I'm still ok. Yesterday was a very productive day! I went in to work at 8am and did some cross-training to learn how to do Pam's job so I can do it the next time she's sick. I also delivered the Council's notebooks for the next meeting and posted the agendas on all the kiosks and two web pages. So that's done!

Today I signed up for an online class that starts in less than an hour. It's one of Anthony Larson's and I don't know if it's stuff I already know or not, but he keeps talking about how more in-depth his classes are, so I thought I'd just check it out. It was only $10. so that's not a big loss. Anyways, I'm a little excited to attend soon.

I'm hoping Papa will be back by then, He's helping to clean the church and I didn't even volunteer to help him, because of the class, tsk tsk.

I love you! Have a fun Saturday!!!