God’s Dilemma

Have you ever been in a room with a powerful person, and a crowd around him? He laughs, and everyone else laughs. Everyone in the room mirrors his thoughts and emotions. Everyone says “yes.” Nobody would dare contradict him. The president of the company meets with workers and tells them to be honest -- but none of them can be. He has too much power so they will tell him what he wants to hear. The world, or at least a powerful person, loves a sycophant. 

Before coming to earth, in the presence of the most powerful being in the Universe, we were all sitting around being yes-men. We did everything to please Him. We wanted to please Him. We could not be ourselves. We could not express any thought contrary to His. Those who did were cast out of heaven. So, all that are left are the yes-men. Now, what can God do? All He has are these stupid people who have no balls, and will only echo His will. Nobody will think for themselves. What good is a yes-man? No good at all. They do not contribute to the Corpus, they only take. 

So, God has a dilemma. He has to cast out all those who oppose Him, because they are like a cancer in the body, being in opposition. They will take away from the function of the group creating war within. They will not submit, or take orders. They will not join or be part of growth, but will stunt growth and kill the body. So, they must be removed, surgically excised, and cast out. So, none are left but those who will say “yes” to everything. They say things they don’t mean. They don’t have an opinion, they don’t use their talents, they don’t build, they are almost like a tumor that doesn’t kill, but neither does it contribute -- though they don’t oppose and try to take over, neither do they promote growth, they just sit around and take nutrients from the body. They are all dependent children. Yes-men are useless!

Every body has these. The physical body has cells that just fill space and perform no useful function. Ideally, these become senescent, and the immune system takes them out. Corporations have many employees who show up, fill space, take a paycheck, but don’t add to the growth of the company. Politics are filled with these -- Poly-, meaning “many” and -tics, which are “tiny, blood-sucking creatures.” Clubs, churches and all organizations have the same issue, many people who are not useful, but are like the dogs that take food from the children. 

God’s dilemma, then, is to have a body with a large number of people, and find a way to organize them into appropriate groups, allowing each to be themselves. Inviting them to His house where they are star-struck is not the way. It is the opposite. The best way to allow them to act for themselves is to put them on a planet where they can just be together, without Him. This is “Lord of the Flies” on steroids! Here we are, a bunch of four-year-olds playing in a big sandbox without any adult supervision. Some are going to take over control. Others are going to throw sand in their eyes - and get beaten. Some are going to copy what they see, while others sit back and watch. There would be a lot of crying, whining, complaining, accusing, “She destroyed my sand castle! WAAAAA!”

When the famous atheist, Richard Dawkins, author of The God Delusion, was asked what he would say if he died and found himself in front of God he replied, “Why did you hide so well?” God is certainly well-hidden in plain sight. But the question is valid, why does He hide so well? Part of that answer is to allow us to be who we are. The hidden God allowed Mr. Dawkins to be atheist. This could not have happened in His presence. Everyone is afforded the opportunity to become who they really are only outside of the presence of God. 

Studies of children left in classrooms for a long time without a teacher show that personalities come out. While the teacher is there, all the children are “Yes, Miss Jordan!” But, as soon as she is gone for a little while -- the usurpers take power, the abusers abuse, the abused are abused, and the fearful ones remain quiet. 

Likewise, we must leave the presence of God to find out what we really are. Once we come to ourselves and discover our likes, dislikes, needs and desires, we can put ourselves into the proper place in the kingdom of God, as Alma says, “thus they stand or fall; for behold, they are their own judges.” (Alma 41:7) We do what we want outside the presence of God. We choose. He gave us choice so we could choose to be ourselves, and not live forever being a yes-man. God does not like yes-men. He wants us to be happy, having our own desires, fulfilling our own destiny, and living according to our own talents and abilities. Happiness is making a contribution. We become a contributing partner only as we have responsibility and ability to do our own work. 

The dilemma is solved by hiding -- putting everyone on a planet outside of His kingdom and letting them choose. It’s easy to be atheist when God is not present. I can be who and what I want because it feels like I can hide. Nobody knows who I am. Nobody knows what I’m thinking. I can do what I want, think what I want, and be who I really am. I am making thousands of choices every day to become myself because I only see myself. I have no supervision by God. God is like the teacher behind the one-way mirror in the classroom who can see everything that goes on, but allows the children, like Mr. Dawkins, to believe that there is no oversight.

Then, when it is time to go back to my heavenly home, I stand before God with the myriad decisions I made in life. I cannot hide any one. I am what I have become by the choices I made outside His presence. I get to say, “this is me,” and find that God loves me for me. He never wanted me to just be an ignorant slave. He wanted me to find my own talents and develop them. He wanted me to add something to His kingdom. He doesn’t want to have to command in all things. God is not a dictator! He says, “For behold, it is not meet that I should command in all things; for he that is compelled in all things, the same is a slothful and not a wise servant; wherefore he receiveth no reward.” (Doctrine and Covenants 58:26) 

Also, in the New Testament, “the lord commended the unjust steward, because he had done wisely: for the children of this world are in their generation wiser than the children of light.” (Luke 16:8) Among the more relevant tasks of life is to experience all I can, to try everything, as the Apostle Paul said, “Prove all things;” (1 Thessalonians 5:21) meaning “test all things.” 

Jesus commands me to “do the works of Abraham.” (John 8:39) Abraham was NOT a yes-man. When God told him that He was going to destroy Sodom, where Lot, Abraham’s nephew, lived, Abraham started bargaining with God to spare the city. Moses was also bold in front of God, convincing Him to spare the children of Israel. These two are great examples of what Paul recommends, “Let us therefore come boldly unto the throne of grace...” (Hebrews 4:16) 

Humility isn’t cow-towing to everything, but rather knowing where I stand in the Universe, it is knowing who I am. I am a child of God. When I grow up, I will be as He is, just as my earthly father is now my peer because I have grown up. My grown children are my peers (sort of). As I play in the sandbox, away from God, I learn about me, discovering who I am, what I like, what I want, what I need. I am growing up only because I make choices, I make my own choices because I am away from the Light, and the Truth. I only see me. I only know me. I am only me. I want. I need. I desire. I see. I hear. I feel. I like. I have. I think. It’s all about me. 

At some point, I begin to see that there are others in the sandbox, who are different than me. They don’t feel the same way I do. They don’t like the same things. We don’t think alike. At first I ridicule, reject, or hate them. However, as I get to know them, I see that they are children of God, and their uniqueness is good. I learn to love them. I realize that together we have much more than if everyone thought the same. God is in our differences. He loves our uniqueness. He doesn’t want yes-men to be automatons, only carrying out His righteous will. He wants me to be able to solve my own problems, and use my unique talents to perform tasks, and to love others. He only wants my differences, not my sameness. 

In the world people love sameness. I fall in love and believe that my significant other is just the same as me. She is “perfect” because we fit together so well because we’re just the same. We can finish each other’s... sandwiches. God, however, is just the opposite. Throw out the sameness -- more of the same is useless! He wants the differences in everyone, because it is the differences that add to Him. He is increased not because people who come to Him are all the same, but because they are so different. He loves our diversity. 

Coming to earth and playing in the sandbox with all the other children of God sets me on my course to be what I am. I can become exactly what God wants me to be -- ME! If I listen to the “Pharisees,” or religionists of my day, I should think God wants a bunch of robots to sit around and echo everything He says, imitating His every gesture, worshipping Him, so He can say we have all grown up to be “just like our Father!” That’s a world thing, not a God thing. 

God has solved His dilemma by pushing everyone out of the house, to live on our own. He is present in spirit, but we don’t see Him. He is hiding. We do what we want, and make lots of mistakes. We can learn from our mistakes, but we must pay the price for them as justice requires. God solved this dilemma by sending His Son, Jesus Christ, to atone for all the mistakes of mankind. I can make mistakes, and put my trust in Him, which allows me plenty of room to be myself. It’s the Lord, Jesus Christ, that allows me to be myself with no worry of reprisal for not being the same as everyone else. I don’t have to be a yes-man because of Him. I can be me. I can become exactly what I am, making choices according to my own desires. I don't have to be under obligation to anyone -- not even God! As I choose daily according to my desires, I become me, and Jesus covers my mistakes, if I repent when I find out it was a mistake.  The plan is perfect! I’m going to become who I really am, I’m not going to have to suffer the consequences of my errors, and God gets all His children back happy, grown-up, peers, with maximal diversity -- no yes-men. How great is that!?!

The Most Precious Jewel

My Father hides from all. He is hidden. His heart is hidden away in a box, a treasure chest with only one jewel in it. He protects Himself like I protect myself. He does not want to be rejected like I don’t want to be rejected. When His children whom He loves so much reject His heart, it hurts Him. He suffers grief and pain, the pain of loss. He wants all of His children. He loves them with a perfect love. He is love. He is willing to suffer for them, to raise them up, but they don’t listen. He doesn’t have a heart wall out of fear of the grief or loss, like me, but rather out of love, to protect them from utter destruction. My heart is hidden to protect me, His is hidden to protect His children from suffering. 

Satan shall be their father, and misery shall be their doom; and the whole heavens shall weep over them, even all the workmanship of mine hands; wherefore should not the heavens weep, seeing these shall suffer? (Moses 7:37)

Very few get to see what this suffering of the damned is like.

I, the Lord, show it by vision unto many, but straightway shut it up again; Wherefore, the end, the width, the height, the depth, and the misery thereof, they understand not, neither any man except those who are ordained unto this condemnation. (Doctrine and Covenants 76:47-48)

In the same manner, few will taste of the sweetness of the heart of God, the fruit of the tree of life. 

Because strait is the gate, and narrow is the way, which leadeth unto life, and few there be that find it. (3 Nephi 14:14)

The heart of God is precious. It must be handled carefully. It must be reverenced. It must be guarded. It must be kept sacred and holy. It must be prized above all that is of the world - the pearl of great price. It is so sacred and holy that care must be taken. A wall is built around it to protect it from destructive forces. It is a heart, a real flesh-and-blood heart that is soft and exposed. The heart of God is vulnerable. It cannot be trifled with. The fruit of the tree of life represents the love of God...

...which is most precious, which is sweet above all that is sweet, and which is white above all that is white, yea, and pure above all that is pure; (Alma 32:42)

He has shown His heart to me. He has given me a wonderful gift. He has blessed me with His love. He has given Himself, His love, His compassion, His mercy, His grace, His charity, which is precious, sweet, clean, and pure. I know the heart of God, He has shown me. I understand that this is a precious jewel, more precious than all the world and everything in it. I just want to hug Him. I want to comfort Him. I want to be with Him. I want to love Him. 

We love him, because he first loved us. (1 John 4:19)

He has a body. He has a heart. He has a real heart, a tender and open heart. He loves, even though His tender heart is rejected. He knows some will hurt Him, and will break His heart, but He gives His heart anyway. He has no fear, but suffers, and weeps over each lost child. He wept over all those who followed Lucifer. He loved them, all of them, and each one of them. He wanted them to choose Him, the same way He desires that I choose Him. 

I said, and also given commandment, that they should love one another, and that they should choose me, their Father; but behold, they are without affection, and they hate their own blood; (Moses 7:33)

When we do not choose Him, He weeps over us. He wants us to choose to be with Him, to have His heart. He still loves all, but many reject His tender heart, and He weeps. He wants them, too. He wants them to be happy. He does all He can to make them happy. He has made the great sacrifice that gives them the ability to choose Him, but they scoff at His love, His sacrifice, His heart. They cast their pearls before swine. They throw away the most precious of all jewels, above all that exists. It is more precious than rubies. They throw away the most valuable thing in the Universe, to wallow in the mire. His heart aches for them.

Those who know His heart, and are made partakers, and turn from Him and reject it are the only ones who cannot be saved. They have broken His tender heart. They are not forgiven, ever. It is the only unforgivable sin. Though He would give His heart to all, He must keep a wall around it so His children don’t know Him. They cannot know Him. He wants them to know Him. His heart aches to have His children with Him. As much as He wants, needs, and desires for all to know Him, He must hide from His own children so they don’t reject His heart and suffer the unknowable suffering of the damned. His heart is tender, but He can take the pain. He doesn’t think of Himself, His desires, but rather protects His children from suffering. Yes they suffer a little more in life because He hides from them, but this is an act of mercy to protect them. 

Fear not; for thou shalt not be ashamed: neither be thou confounded; for thou shalt not be put to shame: for thou shalt forget the shame of thy youth, and shalt not remember the reproach of thy widowhood any more. For thy Maker is thine husband; the Lord of hosts is his name; and thy Redeemer the Holy One of Israel; The God of the whole earth shall he be called. For the Lord hath called thee as a woman forsaken and grieved in spirit, and a wife of youth, when thou wast refused, saith thy God. For a small moment have I forsaken thee; but with great mercies will I gather thee. In a little wrath I hid my face from thee for a moment; but with everlasting kindness will I have mercy on thee, saith the Lord thy Redeemer. (Isaiah 54:4-8)

He will hide for a season, but will come back with tender mercies on all those who love Him, who remain faithful. He is the Husband, and His people are the bride. They are in love. He has given His heart and made a promise to marry them. Likewise, following Him, they give their hearts to Him. They are faithful to each other. They love each other. As bride and groom they have a promise, but not yet a covenant. They are betrothed, but not wedded. As a bride, she can be forgiven for deciding not to get married. Though it breaks His heart, He can forgive her, even though she will not be married to Him. 

When the bride is prepared, she will come to the groom and be wedded to Him. When the bride and groom become husband and wife, they are joined together forever. They make a covenant with each other. She will give her heart, and know His heart. He loves her, cares for her, protects her and provides for her. They grow in love, and become one. They become one...

Wherefore they are no more twain, but one flesh. What therefore God hath joined together, let not man put asunder. (Matthew 19:6)

Once they are married, there is no turning back. The covenant is forever, eternal. If she leaves Him now she cannot come back, her choice is forever. She is lost, perdition, and He weeps over Her. His heart is broken for the loss of His beloved -- each one that is lost. 

His heart is a precious jewel that is not revealed to all, nor is it recognized by all to whom it is revealed. He is the God who weeps because of His tender heart. He loves with all the love of a father for His children. He loves with all the love of a husband for his wife. He loves more. He is love. He has a heart. He cares. He desires to be one with them. 

His commandment to “come unto me” is as much a pleading with all His heart. Come, and be with the tender-hearted Father you never knew. Come, and partake of the fruit of the tree of life. Come, and be happy. Come, all that have burdens, and find rest. Come and be encircled in the arms of His love. Come, and know a fullness of joy. Come unto Him and feel His tender heart; know Him intimately, be one with Him. Come, and have all that He has. Come, and be all that He is. The table is spread; come, and feast on abundance. Come, and dine freely on milk and honey. Come, and find peace to your soul. Come, and possess the most precious jewel -- His heart.

Belief, Faith, and Seeing

 ...faith is things which are hoped for and not seen; wherefore, dispute not because ye see not, for ye receive no witness until after the trial of your faith.

Ether 12:6

A witness comes after the trial of faith, which witness is not necessary, or not substantial, because the witness doesn’t increase faith. In other words, I don’t get a witness until I don’t need it. Once I have sufficient faith, I will get a witness, but at that point, I wouldn’t need a witness because my faith is sufficient to sustain me. I only get what I don’t need. The witness only adds beauty to the structure of faith, it is the outward appearance of faith. 

Those who have sufficient faith are shown what they already know by faith, and can then say they have seen so that others may have faith in their words and come to see the same things they already know by faith.

But because of the faith of men he has shown himself unto the world, and glorified the name of the Father, and prepared a way that thereby others might be partakers of the heavenly gift, that they might hope for those things which they have not seen.

Ether 12:8

Those who believe me when I tell them I have seen, that I have no more faith, but sure knowledge, can then go through the same process of building faith so they can receive a witness. But the witness doesn’t come until after faith.

Wherefore, ye may also have hope, and be partakers of the gift, if ye will but have faith.

Ether 12:9

Faith must exist first, I must know by faith something I haven’t seen, and then the promise of seeing is fulfilled.

...they obtained not the promise until after their faith.

Ether 12:17

People who have faith see what they already know by faith. Moroni explains that many people...

...saw with their eyes the things which they had beheld with an eye of faith...

Ether 12:19

They already had seen it “with an eye of faith.” They already knew. There was no surprise, they knew, like the brother of Jared.

...so great was his faith in God, that when God put forth his finger he could not hide it from the sight of the brother of Jared, because of his word which he had spoken unto him, which word he had obtained by faith.

Ether 12:19-20

The brother of Jared was able to see the Lord because, the Lord “could not hide it...” He had such faith that he already knew. Because he knew the Lord, he was able to see Him. The Lord said to him at this point:

Because thou knowest these things ye are redeemed from the fall; therefore ye are brought back into my presence; therefore I show myself unto you.

Ether 3:13

The manifestation of something is by faith to those who already know by faith. Seeing angels and spiritual things without faith is useless, it doesn’t create faith, and can be lost. Seeing something from outside my beliefs is not evidence, so it doesn’t mean anything to me. Only when I already know by faith is the manifestation beneficial. Nephi was exasperated by his brothers who didn’t have faith. They saw angels and heard the voice of God. They were shocked into submission, they did the impossible in building a ship, but because there was no faith, it didn’t mean anything. There was nothing to hang it on, no faith on which to base the experience, so they lost it. The manifestation, or seeing, is not evidence.

...faith is... the evidence of things not seen.

Hebrews 11:1

A single experience without faith is nothing. If I just see someone, I know what they look like, but I have no basis for a relationship. However, when I have known someone for many years, and have had many experiences with that person, I have evidence of who they are, their character and attributes. My years of experience build faith, while the manifestation or appearance, their dress and words, give me no understanding of their nature and disposition. The brother of Jared knew the character of God:

Yea, Lord, I know that thou speakest the truth, for thou art a God of truth, and canst not lie.

Ether 3:12

It was after this that he was able to see the Lord.

...never have I showed myself unto man whom I have created, for never has man believed in me as thou hast. 

Ether 3:15

Belief is often used as a synonym for faith because faith is the evidence of belief. Evidence is built over time. Beliefs change according to the evidence, but manifestations, miracles, or seeing does not increase evidence; it comes through long-term experience, and is built gradually. Evidence is faith, the witness is the confirmation of faith. For the brother of Jared faith was there. He had built a great deal of evidence, and because he knew the character of God, he was able to be in His presence. The witness must come after the faith sufficient to support it. Faith must precede the miracle, or there is no miracle. A miracle is a manifestation of the power of God. God can to nothing without faith first. God can show me only what I already know by faith.

For if there be no faith among the children of men God can do no miracle among them; 

Ether 12:12

God can do only what is already done by faith. God does the miracle, people see the manifestation of His hand, but that vision only comes by faith. 

For behold, I am God; and I am a God of miracles; and I will show unto the world that I am the same yesterday, today, and forever; and I work not among the children of men save it be according to their faith.

2 Nephi 27:23

On the other hand, God does NOT do anything unless people have faith. So, without faith, nothing will happen. There will be no manifestations, no visions, no healing, no miracles. There must be faith for anything to happen from God.

The Foundation of Faith

The other aspect of faith is that it must be true. If I have a belief that is not true, and I find plenty of “substance” and “evidence” it still is not faith. The issue is that I am not looking simply for confirmation of my beliefs, but rather for the truth. Thus a dedication to truth is essential for building faith.

...if ye have faith ye hope for things which are not seen, which are true.

Alma 32:21

Faith rests on truth. There must be truth as a foundation to sustain all things. A building of “substance” and “evidence” that is not true will crumble, it is a virtual building and cannot hold any true experience. I will not receive a manifestation of God, or any miracle, if my faith is vain, such as a belief in something that isn’t true. Belief without truth is like a building without a foundation, as Lehi, in his dream, saw,

a great and spacious building; and it stood as it were in the air,

1 Nephi 8:26

Nephi was told what the building represented.

And the large and spacious building, which thy father saw, is vain imaginations and the pride of the children of men.

1 Nephi 12:18

“Imaginations” are fantasies. So many people in the world are trying to live a fantasy. They truly believe that they can be saved by money. They truly believe that more food will fill their emptiness. They truly believe that other people could make them happy. It’s all fantasies, vain imaginations, and pride. Nephi was also shown what happens to such structures.

...it fell, and the fall thereof was exceedingly great.

1 Nephi 11:36

Faith must be built on a foundation of truth. The type of person who seeks only to confirm their wrong beliefs, and gratify their pride has no foundation in truth. Only those who are willing to be humble and give up all their own beliefs and desires, who seek only truth, will be able to build faith. My primary objective is to know truth at all costs. Then, I gradually build faith as I receive truth little-by-little. And last, I wait upon the Lord to provide the witness, or the confirmation of my faith. I will see. I will see His hand. I will see miracles.

Witness is mind, Faith is heart

Faith is the first principle of the gospel; it comes from hearing the word of God.

So then faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the word of God.

Romans 10:17

When people listen to the word of God, the Spirit bears witness of it, and it increases their faith in Him. It is the Spirit of God that gives faith, not our own experiences. The witness of the Spirit has more power than all the things we feel, see, and hear. 

when a man speaketh by the power of the Holy Ghost the power of the Holy Ghost carrieth it unto the hearts of the children of men.

2 Nephi 33:1

Note that the Holy Ghost carries the words “unto the hearts” but not in the hearts. It can be there, but if the heart is hard, it will not penetrate. If a heart is hard, and is not able to feel the Spirit of God, then there is no evidence, and thus no faith. Hard hearts, and blind minds prevent people from developing faith. Also, those who are unable to feel His words cannot develop faith. Nephi explains this to his brothers, who never did develop any faith, in spite of a lot of witnesses.

Ye are swift to do iniquity but slow to remember the Lord your God. Ye have seen an angel, and he spake unto you; yea, ye have heard his voice from time to time; and he hath spoken unto you in a still small voice, but ye were past feeling, that ye could not feel his words; wherefore, he has spoken unto you like unto the voice of thunder, which did cause the earth to shake as if it were to divide asunder. And ye also know that by the power of his almighty word he can cause the earth that it shall pass away; yea, and ye know that by his word he can cause the rough places to be made smooth, and smooth places shall be broken up. O, then, why is it, that ye can be so hard in your hearts?

1 Nephi 17:45-46

They had enough experience with God to know that He had power over all the earth, but they were hard in their hearts, or “past feeling,” so the Holy Ghost could not give them faith. Faith must come to the heart by the Holy Ghost, and I must allow it in. Agency is control over my heart, and what I will allow to enter my heart.

Those who have soft hearts, who are seeking truth, who put their own selves, their ideas and desires, below the truth have the quality of humility. Those who are humble put truth first, and since Christ is truth, they put Him first. Submission to the will of God is submission to truth. Humility must come first, or there will be no faith. I can find no evidence for truth unless I have humility. When I am sufficiently humble I can start building faith as the Holy Ghost brings the words of truth to my heart, and I let it in.

Building Faith

...faith is the substance of things...

Hebrews 11:1

Faith is the substance. It is the structure of life. It is the place upon which my visual experience can hang. Seeing is not enough. Sight is temporary. Vision is limited. Seeing something cannot give surety. Past experience doesn't predict the future. Faith predicts the future. By faith comes the production of all things. I can know by faith. I look forward with an eye of faith. The visual experience is only the capstone of faith, it finishes the faith, but the structure is faith. Faith is the bones, and walls; a witness, or seeing, is the stucco, the paint, the color, the outside, the manifestation, the siding, the image. Faith is the structure, seeing is the appearance. Seeing something is the witness of faith. A witness is just the outside, not the frame. Thus, those who have some structure can be given more because they have a place to put the experience, while those who have no walls cannot receive anything from God, and will lose what they have. Jesus drives this concept home with the “parable of the talents.”

For unto every one that hath shall be given, and he shall have abundance: but from him that hath not shall be taken away even that which he hath.

Matthew 25:29

“Them that has, gets,” because they have a place on which to put the experience. There must be some kind of structure on which to hang a façade, you can’t just have stucco and paint, there must be some studs and a foundation. Without the foundation and the structure of the building the outside is worthless. Thus,

Those who need the most, get the least.

Those who need the least, get the most.

Nephi explains one reason why this happens:

Wo be unto him that shall say: We have received the word of God, and we need no more of the word of God, for we have enough! For behold, thus saith the Lord God: I will give unto the children of men line upon line, precept upon precept, here a little and there a little; and blessed are those who hearken unto my precepts, and lend an ear unto my counsel, for they shall learn wisdom; for unto him that receiveth I will give more; and from them that shall say, We have enough, from them shall be taken away even that which they have.

2 Nephi 28:29-30

So, to have more manifestations, visions, and miracles it is necessary to have more faith. Those who build a larger structure of faith with a firm foundation and strong walls will have many more things to hang on the outside. Others may look at your lovely façade, but not know that it is all hanging on faith. Thus it seems that those who have shall be given more, and those who have not shall be taken away what they have. The last group has no structure, no place to hang their stuff. Most of the time they will not get stuff, but if they have stuff and have no place to put it, then it will be taken away because it can’t exist on nothing. Faith doesn’t come from seeing, rather it comes from a different kind of experience. 

Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.

Hebrews 11:1

Substance and evidence are the hallmarks of faith. They are things I hope for, but are not seen. What I see doesn’t cause belief, it’s the other way around. I need to seek to understand things that I don’t see. If I see, I can mistake this for knowing. Knowing is in the heart, and comes by the Holy Ghost. Seeing brings no knowledge. I can know things I cannot see, better than I could know things I do see. Seeing is a deception, a fraud, it isn’t real. Thus, I need a different way to know.

Truth is the foundation. 

Faith is the structure. 

Miracles are the façade. 

These must come in that order. I cannot build walls without a foundation. Nor can I put on the siding without the walls. Each comes in its order, and in its time. 

Signs, Miracles, and Witness -- the Façade

The last part of the building is the adornment, which is actually seeing what I already know. The miracles are always manifest in those who build a building of faith.

And these signs shall follow them that believe; In my name shall they cast out devils; they shall speak with new tongues; They shall take up serpents; and if they drink any deadly thing, it shall not hurt them; they shall lay hands on the sick, and they shall recover.

Mark 16:17-18

The signs shall follow those who have faith. It will happen. It is not a question, it is a sure thing. If there is faith, there will be miracles. God is a God of miracles. He wants to show His children His love. He desires to manifest His hand to help them learn and grow. 

Yea, and even all they who wrought miracles wrought them by faith, even those who were before Christ and also those who were after... And neither at any time hath any wrought miracles until after their faith; wherefore they first believed in the Son of God.

Ether 12:16,18

On the other hand, if I am not seeing miracles, if I don’t have manifestations of the power of God, then I have not built sufficient faith. I don’t believe, I don’t trust.

And the reason why he ceaseth to do miracles among the children of men is because that they dwindle in unbelief, and depart from the right way, and know not the God in whom they should trust.

Mormon 9:20

All who have faith, who do the works of righteousness must have miracles, they must be seeing the hand of God in their lives, or else they don’t believe, and cannot do good.

And wo be unto the children of men if this be the case; for there shall be none that doeth good among you, no not one. For if there be one among you that doeth good, he shall work by the power and gifts of God.

Moroni 10:25

Those who believe in Him, and build their faith on Him, on a foundation of truth, will always have manifestations of their faith. The Lord puts on the outside of our mansion by miracles. If I believe, He will confirm His words by showing His hand in my life. The confirmation of my faith is miracles, specifically those specified as the signs: 

And these signs shall follow them that believe—in my name shall they cast out devils; they shall speak with new tongues; they shall take up serpents; and if they drink any deadly thing it shall not hurt them; they shall lay hands on the sick and they shall recover; And whosoever shall believe in my name, doubting nothing, unto him will I confirm all my words, even unto the ends of the earth.

Mormon 9:24-25

These signs are very specific, and were given to both the disciples in Israel, as well as those in the Americas. These are the ones to look for, these are the confirmation of faith:

1. Cast out devils

2. Speak in tongues

3. Cannot be poisoned

4. Heal the sick

If I don’t see these signs, then I know these are people who don’t believe. Belief brings faith. Faith must precede the miracle. 

People get it backwards. They think if they saw miracles they would believe. They think that faith comes from seeing. That’s all in reverse. I cannot put on the paint until I have some siding. I cannot put up siding until I have walls, I cannot put up walls until I have a foundation. The foundation of dedication to truth is first, then I can put on the walls of faith, and then I can adorn it with the miracles of God. This is why I cannot receive a witness until after I have faith.

The Heart of a Woman

• Women are the heart of society.
• It is essential that society has a heart.
• Men need a heart.
• Unity of man and woman requires a head and a heart.
• Man is the head.
• Woman is the heart.
• A heart is tender.
• We must protect the hearts of women.
  
  
• A woman without a heart is just a head.
• Without a real woman, there is no heart.
• A couple with two heads is just two heads, and no heart.
• If there is no heart, gender becomes irrelevant.
• Two men can be partners with two heads.
• Two women can be partners with two heads.
• Or, a man and a woman can be partners with two heads.
• It’s all the same when there is no heart.
  
  
• Why would a woman have no heart?
• Abuse creates a heart wall that nothing can penetrate.
• Society values their body instead of their heart.
• If women are emotionally damaged, they cannot give their heart.
• If they are exposed to evil they protect their hearts.
• A woman cannot give a broken heart.
  
  

We’re told that women are just like men, that they have all the same wants, needs, desires, and that we should treat them the same. A woman should work the same, and get paid the same, as a man.  A woman can do or be anything she wants. She could be “Rosie the riveter” or run big companies, or leader of the world. A woman should be just like a man... and a man should be just like a woman. This is an earthly concept -- of the world, temporal, temporary. In the world, money is the source of life, and is the measure of success so equality of men and women is found in seeking for power and glory in earning potential, houses, lands, clothing, toys, and all the things of the world that make life good. Why not put a woman in the White House? Women should be ordained to the priesthood. Women should have all the political and economic power in the world that a man may have.

The Big Picture

In the eternities, perhaps there is no difference between a man and a woman in the lower kingdoms of heaven. A man angel is the same as a woman angel. A woman can serve God in all the ways a man can serve God. There is no reproduction so there is no need for a body that can reproduce. There is also no difference in other functions, all are the same there. It doesn’t matter. So, perhaps when one is resurrected into a body that is terrestrial or telestial they are not as man and woman, but gender-neutral. Perhaps even in the celestial glory, the kingdom of the Father, two-thirds are gender-neutral. Thus, since they are not bound together in marriage, and there is no reproduction, gender is irrelevant, so everyone is the same. They become separate, single, androgynous beings. Their unity is sameness. They can be friends, but not sealed. Since they do not increase, gender-neutral is death. This is exactly what people of the world are fighting for. 

However, there is one place in the eternities where the distinction between man and woman makes a difference. The highest degree of the celestial glory means men and women are different, and, as the French say, “Vive le difference!” It is the only place where gender is meaningful. It is where a man and a woman are together for eternity, being a complete human being. It is the highest level of existence, eternal life. Exaltation is the pinnacle of human existence, where a man and woman are as different as can be, but become one. This unity is not sameness, but togetherness in their difference. A man is fully a man, and a woman is completely feminine, and they come together as one to become complete, whole, or perfect -- like God. God is a man -- Man of Holiness is His name. He has a wife. He protects her from the evils of the world, and provides for her. They are one. The difference between men and women is life.

The fullness of the gospel of Jesus Christ is being restored to the earth. While all who have read the Bible since the death of the Apostles could understand heaven and hell -- if you’re good you go to heaven, and if you’re bad you go to hell -- they were missing the fullness, the ultimate glory, the pinnacle of success, our full purpose for existence: exaltation and eternal life. This concept was lost when the Apostles died. There was nobody left to teach it. It is that, as children of God, man can become as He is. The essential ingredient is that nobody is whole and complete as an individual, but together, a man and a woman form a complete human being -- a god. Jesus said: “Be ye therefore perfect” (Matthew 5:48) which means complete, or whole. This requires a man and a woman, together. What the prophet Joseph Smith restored is the ability to become one, the sealing power, the possibility of eternal life, the greatest of all the gifts of God. The purpose of the church is not to teach people how to become androgynous angels, servants to the gods, but rather how to become gods. Therefore, the Church of Jesus Christ will not make women and men the same. Instead, it will teach men how to be men, and women how to be women, and bring them together in unity and love, for when a woman is the heart, and the man is the head, and they are one, they are gods. 

Protect and Provide

Women are special. They have an other-world dimension of charity. They have the ability to make mankind whole. They have a heart filled with love. They are not just like men. Women are not men. Women should not be going to war. Women should not be slaying dragons. Women should not be doing all the worldly things to seek fame and fortune. These are fleeting; they whither, rot, and decay due to entropy with a final end in nothing. All that is bought with money is useless. Only love endures, and without real women there is no love. Children are only taught to make money, to be servants, to be workers in society. They don’t learn love, and don’t have hearts. Without a heart, a woman is just like a man, subject to all the evils of the world, seeking money and power. To maintain love, women should be out of the world, and completely immersed in eternity. Women need to be protected from the evils of the world so they can have a heart, so they can love and build trust, so they can put all their efforts into connecting couples, family, and society together. The glue that holds us together is love. 

The Lord explains that the heart of a woman is tender, and must be protected. The prophet Jacob clearly told the Nephite men that their lasciviousness caused broken hearts of their wives and lost confidence of their children, which brings condemnation on the whole society.

For behold, I, the Lord, have seen the sorrow, and heard the mourning of the daughters of my people in the land of Jerusalem, yea, and in all the lands of my people, because of the wickedness and abominations of their husbands. And I will not suffer, saith the Lord of Hosts, that the cries of the fair daughters of this people, which I have led out of the land of Jerusalem, shall come up unto me against the men of my people, saith the Lord of Hosts. For they shall not lead away captive the daughters of my people because of their tenderness, save I shall visit them with a sore curse, even unto destruction; for they shall not commit whoredoms, like unto them of old, saith the Lord of Hosts. And now behold, my brethren, ye know that these commandments were given to our father, Lehi; wherefore, ye have known them before; and ye have come unto great condemnation; for ye have done these things which ye ought not to have done. Behold, ye have done greater iniquities than the Lamanites, our brethren. Ye have broken the hearts of your tender wives, and lost the confidence of your children, because of your bad examples before them; and the sobbings of their hearts ascend up to God against you. And because of the strictness of the word of God, which cometh down against you, many hearts died, pierced with deep wounds.

Jacob 2:31-35

Men break the hearts of their wives and lose the confidence of their children by seeking gratification. It is lasciviousness that ruins the world, breaks down families, and brings destruction on society. Hearts are broken, the glue of love is lost, and there is nothing but heads. Men look at women to lust after them, breaking their covenant to be true to their wives. Their children have no confidence. Their daughters don’t believe that a man will protect her so she protects herself. She builds a wall. Without a heart, she then becomes a head, she learns to get along in the world, seeking power, glory, honor, money, lands, houses, toys, and temporal things. She often becomes bitter and angry over the broken heart. She cannot love. She has nothing to give. She cannot fulfill her destiny. She feels empty with all her stuff, it doesn’t fill her true needs or help her fulfill her destiny. 

In that case, a man has the same issue, finding gratification of desires unfulfilling, and having no heart, he can become bitter and angry. What he really needs for fulfillment is the heart of a woman, but his desires have broken her heart and she cannot give it. They cannot become one. They cannot achieve their ultimate purpose. They are not complete nor whole, and cannot be perfect. That which they seek is lost, making them “ripe for destruction.”

The Lord commanded men to “take up their cross” and sacrifice their desires (3 Nephi 12:28-30). By making the sacrifice to not even allow the thought of adultery, men can receive so much more. What he really wants is her heart. The flesh is just a token of the heart, so it is deceptive. It feels like she gives her heart, briefly, but then reality comes and he knows she is not his, they are not really one. Sex is an impostor; there is no fulfillment. However, in making the sacrifice, he can allow his wife to feel safe and she will be able to give the real thing, and they can become one. By giving up the desire for her body he can have her heart. This is real. It fills the need. It brings fulfillment, love, and happiness.

Rather than force them into the world, men need to protect their women, wives and daughters, from wickedness and debauchery. They need to teach them faith, hope, and charity -- to trust in God -- so they don’t build a wall around their hearts. If men take responsibility to protect and provide, then women will be able to love because they won’t need a wall to protect themselves from evil, or provide for themselves -- they can transcend the world and give love. A man must protect all women from the evils of the world; the heart of a woman must be sacred. She must feel safe. She must be innocent. She is love, the glue that holds everyone together. In the world women need real men who are willing to slay the dragon, and fight evil for them so they can be open, loving, free, and able to give their hearts. They will give their hearts to their husbands, making the world a more loving place. Anger and bitterness will be replaced by love. Parents will love their children, and children who grow up with love will be able to love. There will be no misery, for all will be loved; peace will reign. 

If there is going to be unity, we must have women with pure hearts, unadulterated by the things of the world, not caring for money or power on earth, but for love, charity, and the power of God. Joseph Smith told the Women's Relief Society of Nauvoo that they “should be a select Society separate from all the evils of the world, choice, virtuous and holy.” Joseph Smith further taught women, "All must act in concert or nothing can be done." And "by union of feeling we obtain power with God.” The pure heart of a woman has the potential to bring unity - and the power of God - to the world. There is no way to place a monetary value on a woman who loves with an open heart, “for her price is far above rubies!” (Proverbs 31:10)

Creating World Peace

I beseech of you that ye do not procrastinate the day of your repentance until the end; for after this day of life, which is given us to prepare for eternity, behold, if we do not improve our time while in this life, then cometh the night of darkness wherein there can be no labor performed. Ye cannot say, when ye are brought to that awful crisis, that I will repent, that I will return to my God. Nay, ye cannot say this; for that same spirit which doth possess your bodies at the time that ye go out of this life, that same spirit will have power to possess your body in that eternal world. For behold, if ye have procrastinated the day of your repentance even until death, behold, ye have become subjected to the spirit of the devil, and he doth seal you his; therefore, the Spirit of the Lord hath withdrawn from you, and hath no place in you, and the devil hath all power over you; and this is the final state of the wicked.

Alma 34:33-35

Conflict

The soul is body and spirit.

There is a battle between the flesh and the spirit.

The body needs to live, and feel good.

The spirit needs to feel right and just.

If the body does all it wants, the spirit will not feel right.

If the spirit dominates, the body will never feel good. 

The battle is over filling the emptiness.

The body wants to fill it with things of the world.

The spirit wants to fill it with God.

The body would use chemicals, sex, food, and other worldly things.

The spirit wants to connect back to God through the Holy Ghost.

The things of the body suppress the things of the spirit.

Separation of the body and spirit is death.

They must go together.

One must win, and bring the other along.

Both cannot have what they want and remain together.

There is a constant battle.

Truce

The default is not peace, but truce.

Truce is when the body and spirit are still enemies, but there are no battles.

Truce is suppression of either the spirit or the body.

Denial of the battle causes domination of the body over the spirit.

The flesh dominates by default because of immediate needs.

Domination by the body is truce because the spirit will always be empty.

Suppression of the spirit brings guilt and shame.

Spiritualists put the needs of the spirit over the body.

The spirit dominates by suppression of the needs of the flesh.

When the spirit dominates, the body rebels, causing addictions, pain, and fatigue.

Truce isn’t peace because the body and spirit are still at odds.

Truce is false integration by domination.

Truce  is temporary.

Truce eventually ends in war because enmity still reigns.

Truce, whether dominated by the body or the spirit, maintains division.

The Spirit of God cannot dwell in unholy temples.

If we aren’t integrated there is no peace.

Integrity comes from unity.

Unity only exists in the absence of domination.

True integrity of soul is peace.

Peace

Unity comes from repentance.

Repentance is submission of my whole soul to God.

The body obeys Christ.

The spirit obeys the Holy Ghost.

The flesh and the spirit are one.

They are integrated when both are subject to God.

Neither the body nor the spirit wins the war.

Peace is to have both the body and spirit subject to God.

Peace is integration of body and spirit.

Integration is being one.

Integrity is unity.

Unity is found in Christ.

Christ can bring a remission of sins, removing guilt and shame.

Only Jesus Christ can bring peace because of forgiveness.

Forgiveness allows the Holy Ghost to be with me.

The Holy Ghost cannot dwell in unholy temples.

I can receive the Holy Ghost if I repent and am forgiven.

The Holy Ghost fills the void.

The Holy Ghost becomes the guide for my soul.

Peace comes when the Holy Spirit is inside me.

Nothing outside of me can disturb my peace.

Peace is internal.

Peace is forever.

Peace I leave with you, my peace I give unto you: not as the world giveth, give I unto you.

John 14:27

The peace of the world is, like everything else of the world, only temporary. Lack of conflict by suppression of one side of warring parties is a truce. They are still at odds. Either way it is truce -- being spiritual, religious, pious, faithful, believing, or otherwise devoted to the spirit can bring a truce by suppressing the body, like a Stoic. However, in a way, it is no different than being Epicurean, hedonist, indulgent, licentious, or incontinent. One favors the flesh, the other favors the body. There is still incongruity inside. Having a truce may seem like peace, but the enmity still exists.

Those who are self-indulgent suppress their spirit, bringing remorse, guilt, and shame. They fight against the shame. They blame others for shaming them. They blame their parents for raising them with shame. It feels like they can suppress their shame by giving it to someone else. They are constantly running away from themselves, and how they feel about themselves. They compare themselves to others, trying to look good on the outside. Guilt is hidden by creating battles. The guilty take up causes and otherwise fight against what they see as evil. They belong to the “right” political party, religion, or other organization. They raise funds for the downtrodden and oppressed. They prove they have no reason to feel guilty by doing things they think are good. They recruit others to their cause so they can have “a cloud of witnesses” that they are basically good, right, true, and that they have integrity. They may appear to have integrity because they have a truce, but there is no peace in an hedonist truce. 

The other truce is just as tenuous. When the spirit takes over and suppresses the appetites of the body, the body rebels and causes pain, addictions, chronic fatigue, and all sorts of illness. People try to assuage their guilt and shame by suppressing their appetites, and simply become suppressed addicts. In 12-Step programs I am told that I am an addict, and I will always be an addict. The best I can ever be is a controlled addict. Thus, I must go to meetings incessantly, and suffer other addictions that come from trying to control one. If I’m “clean and sober” from drugs, I might be smoking, drinking alcohol, or using large amounts of caffeine. I still have a chemical problem, I just trade around which one I’m using. Often, giving up chemical addictions brings on food addictions. Obesity is rampant, especially in those who are religious, and exceptionally pious about avoiding sinful chemicals. Meditation, yoga, iron man races, fasting, extreme dieting, or other ways of suppressing the appetites and needs of the body may also produce rebellion. Life is pain. In a truce, the war just goes on, underground. There is no peace in a stoic truce.

My internal war rages on like war in the Middle-East. There are times of truce only because one population is suppressed. Israel represents the spirit, and the Palestinians represent the body. When it was Palestinian territory, there were no borders, the people were nomadic, going around in tents, living wherever they desired. Israel came in and made lines, borders, ownership, infrastructure. They suppress the Palestinians. There is truce, but it is tenuous at all times. Palestinians are so suppressed, they feel the only way out is to strap a bomb to themselves and take a few Israelis with them. Israel must be constantly vigilant with a big army, including every young man and woman. It is costly to maintain a truce.

All the answers given of the world bring truce, not peace. Counselors, life coaches, therapists, psychologists and the like have an agenda to allow either the spirit or the body take control of the soul. But, having one side suppress the other is not unity, it is a truce. People may say they are being true to themselves by choosing one or the other, but it is not true integrity. It’s false, because one whole part is missing. Both are important. Both are necessary for me to become whole. I need both to become perfect. 

Be ye therefore perfect

    Matthew 5:48

How do I become integrated without suppressing either my body or my spirit? The answer, like most answers in the world, that both are wrong. Neither one is the right way. Neither the body nor the spirit dominates. The right way is repentance and faith in the Lord, Jesus Christ. The body and spirit both submit to Christ and they become one. There is true unity. There is no war. It’s not a truce because they are not enemies. They do not fight, nor rebel, because there is nothing to fight against. Neither are trying to dominate the other. Each is committed to the Lord. The Lord becomes the lord of my soul -- body and spirit. He is the Lord of my body. He is the Lord of my spirit. Where there was conflict, now there is none because both have one lord, the Lord of lords.

...the words of Christ will tell you all things what ye should do.

2 Nephi 32:3

The Lord of my body trains me to care for the body. I get enough, but not too much. I train carefully. I use contrast in all things: feast and fast, exercise and rest, wake and sleep. I keep a good circadian rhythm. All appetites, passions, and desires are kept within the bounds the Lord sets for them. Sex, food, drugs, exercise, and all things of the body are regulated, not suppressed. Each need is filled, and feeling is expressed, in the proper time, place, and way. The regulation of the body is done using guidelines without hard-and-fast rules. The guidelines keep things in their proper place, but allow for changes at any time.

...the Holy Ghost... will show unto you all things what ye should do.

2 Nephi 32:5

The Lord is lord of my spirit, giving connection with God, comfort, forgiveness. I have no guilt or shame. The spirit can rest. There is hope. There is love. There is peace. The spirit is happy. I can have the Holy Ghost with me to guide me and to comfort me. When the war is past, my spirit can learn about the body, the power of feelings, and physical strength. I can become one with my body. There is no more war, no more truce, no more rebellion. I have integrity through true integration in Christ. I am one. There is one “I” not two. One.

I say unto you, be one; and if ye are not one ye are not mine.

Doctrine and Covenants 38:27

Repentance brings peace in all things. If both the Israelis and the Palestinians turn to the Lord, there would be peace in Israel. They would become one people, as it was described in the Book of Mormon. The Nephites and Lamanites had been mortal enemies for hundreds of years, with multiple times of war and truce, but the Lord changed that. When He came to visit the people, they all turned to Him. Neither side won the war, it was God that brought peace.

...the people were all converted unto the Lord, upon all the face of the land, both Nephites and Lamanites, and there were no contentions and disputations among them, and every man did deal justly one with another. And they had all things common among them; therefore there were not rich and poor, bond and free, but they were all made free, and partakers of the heavenly gift.

4 Nephi 1:2-3

This sounds ideal! This is what everyone wants! This is the society everyone is trying to create, in their own way. Some are fighting against poverty, others are fighting against corruption, but all this fighting is just hacking away at the leaves of evil. The roots are inside each person. When the people have internal peace, when they are all converted to the Lord, Jesus Christ, then we can truly have peace because all will have inner peace. Nobody will need justification. Nobody will be hedonist or stoic. All will be Christian. Love will abound.

 And it came to pass that there was no contention in the land, because of the love of God which did dwell in the hearts of the people. And there were no envyings, nor strifes, nor tumults, nor whoredoms, nor lyings, nor murders, nor any manner of lasciviousness; and surely there could not be a happier people among all the people who had been created by the hand of God.

4 Nephi 1:15-16

When all have integrity, and peace, there is no more reason to fight, there is nothing to fight against. When there are no internal wars, then there will be no external wars. 

The answer is repentance. Don’t obey your body. Don’t listen to the “wisdom” of your body. Your body is not omniscient, it only knows what it wants and needs right now. On the other hand, don’t suppress the body with your spirit. Rather submit your whole soul to God, being obedient only to Him. If we all turn to the Lord, we will have inner peace, not just a truce. It will not be suppression, but true peace. The Lord will fill the inner needs. The Lord will comfort every sorrow and dry every tear. Conversion to the Lord, Jesus Christ, will bring the peace everyone craves. There is no other way. Everything else is just a truce. Only Christ brings peace.

No Christ, no peace.
Know Christ, know peace.

Now is the time to repent. Now. Don't wait. Repentance is not an event, it's a lifetime process. Start now.

An Easy Life

Life is easy. 

Everything is easy. 

Life is as easy as pie. 

There is nothing hard about life. 

There is nothing hard about anything in life. 

Simple. Pure. Real. Easy. 

Difficulty

Wrong is hard

Fake is hard.

Fantasy is hard.

False is hard.

Untruth is complex.

There are infinite falsehoods for every truth.

Believing in something that isn’t true makes life hard.

Fiction causes difficulty.

Lies make it hard.

Trying to live a fairy tale makes life hard.

Things are hard when I make mistakes.

Ignorance always makes life hard.

Everyone has an opinion.

Lies are hard because they don’t work. 

All that is hard about life is ignorance.

Everything that makes life hard is not true.

Anything is hard when I don’t know how.

Life is hard if I don’t know truth.

It’s hard not to know.

Life is not supposed to be hard.

Easy

Truth is simple.

Truth is real.

Truth is easy.

Truth is always easy.

Truth is happy.

Truth is healthy.

Truth is fulfilling.

There is only one truth.

Reality is truth.

Everyone has the same truth.

Truth always works.

One truth obliterates millions of lies.

When we know truth, everything becomes easy.

Once I know how to do something, it’s easy.

Once I know the truth about something, it’s easy.

All I need to know is truth, and life becomes easy.

There is only one thing to learn - Truth! Simple. Easy.

Life is supposed to be easy.

Knowledge

There are an infinite number of lies for every truth. Lies make life hard. Truth makes it easy.

There are an infinite wrong ways for every right way.

There are infinite wrong answers -- and none of them help.

Wading through all the opinions and theories about a subject is hard. Learning the truth about it is easy.

If I can't explain it to a child, then I don't know the truth about something.

Not knowing what causes scurvy makes it a hard illness to treat. Vitamin C gives a 100% cure rate in one day without any pain. Easy!

Being ignorant of the cause of illness makes it hard to treat, knowing the truth will cure any illness.

Thomas Edison found out that there were a thousand wrong ways to produce electric light. Knowing  the principles of electricity and light makes it easy.

Not knowing why people act the way we do makes it hard. Knowing the truth about people makes relationships easy.

It’s hard to fix a car with the wrong tools. Having the right tools makes the work easy.

Being ignorant of the principles of construction makes building my house hard. If I know the truth about carpentry It’s easy to build a strong house. 

Addictions are hard because they are the wrong way to deal with problems. Knowing the right way makes it easy.

Diets are hard because they are a fantasy. There is a single, simple truth that makes health easy.

Reading an unknown language is hard. Knowing how to read makes it easy.

Living with death and disease is hard, but knowing the truth about life, and the “big picture” of our existence, makes it easy.

I’m not going to do well on a test if I don’t know the subject, but the test is easy when I have all the right answers.

There is only one thing needed when life gets hard -- truth. 

Once I know truth everything becomes easy.

Knowledge makes life easy.

God

Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.

Matthew 11:28-30

God knows everything.

The source all truth is God.

God’s way is easy because He knows all truth.

Knowing God gives me access to truth.

I don’t have to guess among millions of wrong things if I can ask God.

The gift of the Holy Ghost is my access to truth.

The Holy Ghost is the Comforter, giving the truth to comfort me, making life comfortable. 

My soul can rest when I know truth.

My burdens are all lightened by truth.

Knowing truth makes life easy.

Knowing God makes life easy.

I know God. 

Life is easy.

Let’s Make A Deal!

Everything is out there. Every philosophy, every desire, and every need. Every dream I have ever had can be fulfilled. I can be, or do, or have anything I want. There are no limits. I am not bound by anything. There are no rules. I can go anywhere. 

I have been reading a book by a woman who divorced her husband to marry another woman, who says she feels right for the first time; she has obeyed her inner voice and is now fulfilling her destiny. She has everything she wants, now. She is “Untamed” and has become who she really is inside. She is wild, letting her natural woman be her guide. She likens it to a cheetah in the zoo who needs to be out in the wild and “be a cheetah,” instead of being caged and following a dog, running behind a jeep after a stuffed rabbit. Find out who you are, and become that, not what others say you should be. She feels perfect just the way she is, and has quit trying to fit into a world of “shoulds” laid down by a patriarchal society. The book is great in so many ways, but I feel few will recognize that she gave up the future for the present. 

Life is like a game show. Monty Hall goes to a member of the audience and says, “Let’s Make a Deal!” “I will give you this brand new washer and dryer set, or, you can trade it in for what’s behind the curtain. There is a decision to be made. I don't know what’s behind the curtain. It could be a new car, or a goat. Tough decision. Do I keep what I have, or do I give it up for the possibility of something better?

In my life, I am constantly in this dilemma. If I make a sacrifice, I never know what I’m getting! I go to college, but don’t know if I will get the job I want. When I married, I didn’t know what my spouse would decide to do. When we decided to have children, we didn’t know what our children would be like. I just never know at the outset, the end result of my commitment. That’s the deal -- I give up something I have, that I like, for something that I can’t see or know, but I’m told it’s better than what I have.

Either way, it’s a sacrifice. I can sacrifice my future for my present, or vice-versa. When I make a choice to do something, I automatically choose not to do anything else. When I make a sacrifice, it’s gone forever. I can only move forward with what I have. There are only three choices I have with any deal I make: I can keep it and hate it (I didn’t sign up for this!), I can keep it and love it, or I can give it up for another unknown. The deals never end -- until the end.

While I love the concept in the book of being myself instead of what my parents, society, church, or other people think I “should” be, I think it’s short-sighted to only become what I want, not knowing the possibilities. Being “true to myself” seems like giving in to the desires of the flesh, and ignoring the eternal possibilities. There are two parts of me, the natural man of flesh, and the spiritual, or eternal, being. The book is about becoming the “natural man.”

For the natural man is an enemy to God... (Mosiah 3:19)

There is a war going on inside of me between that which is spiritual, and that which is temporal. The temporal is represented by the body and my immediate needs, wants, and desires of the flesh. The spiritual is represented by the spirit and it’s eternal needs. My spirit needs to connect with God, and all that is eternal. I need a soul, a complete body and spirit together, unified, one. However, they are at odds. If I choose one, I must give up the other. I cannot have both. The only real decision I make in life is how I’m going to integrate. I need integrity, which brings peace. 

No man 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. (3 Nephi 13:24)

In being my natural self, I connect with my body on its terms. I obey my natural instincts and become wild and untamed. I have to give up the spiritual to take on the desires of the flesh as a way of integration, the spirit becoming subject to the body. I have a soul -- the body and spirit are one. It feels so good to be integrated. It feels so right. It feels like I have integrity for the first time. I’m no longer divided inside myself. I have peace. I have integrity. The war is over. I have a real connection inside, and I don’t need an outside connection. It’s all about me. I’m whole. My flesh has won the war, and, don’t you know? The good guys always win! Always. Yes, it’s real, but it’s temporary. The flesh will not go with me. Everything in the world will go away -- it all ends, sooner or later.

So, in “being myself” I lose what I could have had because I never find out that there is so much more -- SO MUCH MORE! By choosing the flesh I give up eternity. It’s like deciding to remain a caterpillar and not making a cocoon to become a butterfly. I feel like the book is saying, “Be the caterpillar you are! Don’t sacrifice your life in a cocoon!” The caterpillar is real, but if it doesn’t make the sacrifice of itself, it will never know what it’s like to fly. That’s the deal: You can keep what you have, or you can give it up for something better that you can’t know until you decide.

Faith is the basis of all eternal decisions.

Life on the ground can seem good as long as I’m getting what I want, but then I don’t learn. I don’t become more than I am. I don’t need faith to remain a caterpillar -- I already experience that. Faith is giving up what I know for a promise of something better.

And verily I say unto thee that thou shalt lay aside the things of this world, and seek for the things of a better. (Doctrine and Covenants 25:10)

I don’t even know what “a better” world looks like.  I don’t even know what my potential is. I can’t even fathom what I could become. I can’t have goals because I don’t know the possibilities. 

Eye hath not seen, nor ear heard, neither have entered into the heart of man, the things which God hath prepared for them that love him. (1 Corinthians 2:9)

The sacrifice is faith -- faith in the Lord, Jesus Christ, trust in God, patience in suffering, and hope for a better world. He is the only hope of integration of the soul by the spirit. Through Him my spirit is in charge. It’s the opposite of being wild and untamed, the body becomes subject to the spirit.

And thus the flesh becoming subject to the Spirit, or the Son to the Father, being one God, suffereth temptation, and yieldeth not to the temptation... (Mosiah 15:5)

He tells me what to do: follow Him, and do what He did. 

And behold, I am the light and the life of the world; and I have drunk out of that bitter cup which the Father hath given me, and have glorified the Father in taking upon me the sins of the world, in the which I have suffered the will of the Father in all things from the beginning. (3 Nephi 11:11)

All God asks is everything of the flesh.

“a religion that does not require the sacrifice of all things never has the power sufficient to produce the faith necessary unto life and salvation.” (Joseph Smith)

Verily I say unto you, all among them who know their hearts are honest, and are broken, and their spirits contrite, and are willing to observe their covenants by sacrifice—yea, every sacrifice which I, the Lord, shall command—they are accepted of me. (Doctrine and Covenants 97:8)

Becoming the caterpillar that I already am only keeps me on the ground, in the mud; I don’t get to fly. The Monarch butterfly can go all over North America - from Mexico to Canada, and all over the United States! She is the Mariposa Reina, the queen, flying thousands of miles every year. Why would I want to continue to live and die a caterpillar -- even if I can be the best caterpillar in the world? No, I will make the sacrifice and let my own world die. I will gladly go into the chrysalis and give up all I know of crawling on the ground so I can be so much more. That’s the deal. It’s my pie-in-the-sky deal that I will always make, because I want more. I want to fly! 

I’ve been there. I have been where the author was, and I made a different decision. I was presented with everything I wanted in life and could have had all my desires fulfilled. I could have given up eternal things for temporal things and become integrated by the flesh. But, I made the other choice. Instead of choosing the body, I chose the spirit. I still have an integrated soul. I have peace. I have integrity, and all that goes with it. The war is over, and my spirit won, instead of my body. The good guys always win! God won instead of the devil. The eternal won over the temporal. I have overcome the world. I am a spiritual being. There is no anchor to hold me to the Earth. I’m no longer tempted by anything, or anyone, in the world. I reject everything temporary. I “have no more disposition to do evil, but to do good continually.” (Mosiah 5:2)

I made a good deal. It’s like I gave up a bottle of fine wine for a mansion on the coast. There is no comparison. The bottle may be consumed in minutes, and it’s gone, but the mansion is forever. I have not received my mansion, but I trust in the Lord that His promises are fulfilled. What a great deal! Monty would be so excited! I gave up the temporal for the eternal. 

The deal I made with God is real. It is a real choice. It is the only choice, ultimately. I can keep what I have in the world, or I can trade it in for something else hidden away behind the veil. I have to choose first. The Lord tells me it’s better. I believe. I take a chance. My faith is taking the chance and giving up the wild, the known, the world, comforts, and everything of the flesh. I always go for the deal. I never want to stay with what I have -- I want more. The sacrifice allows me to get what I really want -- Eternal Life! That’s flying! I trade in the physical, temporal, and immediate, for that which is spiritual, eternal, and distant. That’s the deal. In His own time, and in His own way, the Lord comes to everyone on the Earth and says, “Let’s make a deal!”