Do You Believe In Angels?

As members of the Church we definitely believe in angels. Joseph Smith's visits with Moroni concerning the whereabouts of the gold plates is a great example.

But today, on the eve of game 6 between the Bronx Bombers (NY Yankees) and the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim, you have to ask yourself, do you believe in Angels? The Yankeees lead the series three games to two and are playing in NYC in the cold and rain. Will the spirit of Nick Adenhart, who was killed by a drunk driver after his first start this year on April 9th at the age of 22, be in attendance and guide some Angel hits over the fence? Or will some of the guys in Yankee pinstripes inexplicably miss a ground ball or swing at a pitch and miss by millimeters because of some unseen help from above? Do you believe in Angels?

Kimber-noodle-bucket does! On Thursday night she went to bed before game five was completed (Angels won 7-6 to force game six). Early Friday morning she woke up at 3 a.m. and mom went in to check on her. As mom tucked her in the following short conversation ensued.

Kimber asked, "Did the Angels win?"

Mom: Yes.

Kimber: Good!

Kimber-noodle-bucket believes in Angels and so should you!

Here's looking to a game seven with a trip to the World Series on the line...

If You Wanna Be Happy For The Rest Of Your Life...

No, not the rest of that line, but 1st Nephi 2:20!

"And inasmuch as ye shall keep my commandments, ye shall prosper, and shall be led to a land of promise..." I like this verse because it is one of the major themes of the Book of Mormon and you can find it throughout the entire book. I enjoy seeing that this important message gets to the end of the row to many of the prophets and writers in the Book of Mormon. As you read, see if you can find as many as you can or variations of the same theme. Good luck!

I know that this promise works because I have seen it in my own life. I am certainly not perfect, but I do know that from my upbringing from my youth that striving to live the gospel fully brings prosperity (not just in a financial/material sense). I have been truly blessed in my life by my Heavenly Father because I have tried to follow this IF...Then...formula. May you be likewise blessed as you follow it in your life and then recognize those blessings as they come, even in the midst of difficult days. And, remember the promise ultimately is the Promised Land or symbolically speaking, Eternal Life.

Love, Dad

I, Nephi...

The most famous of all Book of Mormon passages must be, "I, Nephi, having been born of goodly parents...". I love my parents and appreciate what they taught me, but what I wanted to share from this verse in 1st Nephi 1:1 is the importance of the word "therefore". Following this word, Nephi shares that he was taught "in all the learning of my father:"

What one does with a "therefore" or "wherefore" is to look at what follows and then look back to what preceded this connecting word to see the connection. In this case, Nephi was taught by his father, which then gives new meaning to Nephi's statement about being born of goodly parents. Nephi's parents are goodly because they taught him in all things.

So, as a parent, much of what one might term success in ones children hinges upon the effort to teach our children in all aspects of learning (secular and religious). I hope this all makes sense, but it has been fun to look for these in my scripture study this year.

Another example includes--1 Nephi 1:5. Why is Lehi praying? Because the prophets were telling those in Jerusalem to repent or be destroyed and Lehi was responding to their message. One other can be found in 1 Nephi 2:16--Find the word "wherefore" and after the word it says that Nephi "did cry unto the Lord". Why is he doing this? Look to what is before the "wherefore" and it says that Nephi "desires to know of the mysteries of God".

Have a great day!

Your striving to be a "goodly parent" DAD