Book of Mormon Stories Chapter 10

1 Nephi 10 We are going to run out of summer before we finish First Nephi! I'm sad for the summer to run out, but have enjoyed the chance to have these talks with my children about things that matter so much to me.

1 And now I, Nephi, proceed to give an account upon these plates of my proceedings, and my reign and ministry; wherefore, to proceed with mine account, I must speak somewhat of the things of my father, and also of my brethren.

Do you ever have to explain some aspect of your family history when telling someone a story, explaining some event?

5 And he also spake concerning the prophets, how great a number had testified of these things, concerning this Messiah, of whom he had spoken, or this Redeemer of the world.

Do you find things in your lives which are relevant to things the Prophets have said? If not; look harder! Or ask us, we see it often.

8 Yea, even he should go forth and cry in the wilderness: prepare ye the way of the Lord, and make his paths straight; for there standeth one among you whom ye know not; and he is mightier than I, whose shoe’s latchet I am not worthy to unloose. And much spake my father concerning this thing.

Would it bother you to have to introduce someone else as "better" than you? A sibling, or a relative? Can you celebrate the success of other people without being jealous?

11 And it came to pass after my father had spoken these words he spake unto my brethren concerning the gospel which should be preached among the Jews, and also concerning the dwindling of the Jews in unbelief. And after they had slain the Messiah, who should come, and after he had been slain he should rise from the dead, and should make himself manifest, by the Holy Ghost, unto the Gentiles.

How does it make you feel when we bear our testimony? Do you feel uplifted? Harangued? Enlightened? Bored?

13 Wherefore, he said it must needs be that we should be led with one accord into the land of promise, unto the fulfilling of the word of the Lord, that we should be scattered upon all the face of the earth.

What does "one accord" mean? How do you think it feels to be that way? Worth trying for?

17 And it came to pass after I, Nephi, having heard all the words of my father, concerning the things which he saw in a vision, and also the things which he spake by the power of the Holy Ghost, which power he received by faith on the Son of God—and the Son of God was the Messiah who should come—I, Nephi, was desirous also that I might see, and hear, and know of these things, by the power of the Holy Ghost, which is the gift of God unto gall those who diligently seek him, as well in times of hold as in the time that he should manifest himself unto the children of men.

Do you desire to hear, see and know the things that your parents have? How might that help us to reach one accord? Do you think Unity is important?

20 Therefore remember, O man, for all thy doings thou shalt be brought into judgment.

Are we judged for our intentions or our actions? Why can we be judged for our malicious intentions (no matter their outcome), but not reward for our good intentions (which yield no subsequent good action)? Is that fair?

Youth Conference, Kirtland Ohio, 2009

Every time I think about the fun we had at Youth Conference, my heart is full. It was a wonderful time with my own children, as well as the youth from our ward. If the formatting of the pictures and comments are off...treat it like a game! Match the comment!

Getting ready to leave the Stake Center parking lot.

The evening of our first day, we met on the Johnson farm and heard a great lecture on the importance of Kirtland in church History.



There was a great dance later that night.
Once it got to be bed time, the boys were supposed to "keep their feet on the floor".

Chaperones had to stay up late and watch the halls.

Emma Smith's favorite china patten. I thought it was a tender detail amidst so much of the history focusing on the profound spirituality and persecution of the Saints' history in this town.

On the grounds of the Kirtland Temple.
Our bus practiced singing "All Creatures of Our God and King" on the way to the testimony meeting Thursday night.

It was nice to hug the kids on the steps of the temple. Amazing to sing hymns in the temple itself, to hear my children bear testimonies where the Prophet had testified.
I was delighted to see examples of early pioneer decoration; "feather painting" was in evidence all over the Johnson farmhouse.

The boys stick-wrestling.

By lunchtime, the kids were pretty dazed.


Stewart helped make me a cup to pour my soda over ice, using an empty water bottle and a soda can tab.

Then he played ping pong with Max.

There are more photos in a facebook gallery.

Every Epic Love Story, Chapter Three; Crushing in Earnest

Winter semester, 1986. Yep, I was smitten. Smote. Pole-axed. Twitterpated. I was lovesick and stupid.

But remember, I was also certain that I would never qualify for her attentions. So I took refuge in that course action available to hopeless romantic doofs for time immemorial.

I followed her around.

This part, I kind of worry about. Stalking is a real, violent, pathological behavior. I can make jokes (hey, it’s all very romantic until someone calls the cops), but I want to make it clear that what I was doing was silly, not scary.

Back then, students’ schedules were public. You could go look up your friends on a microfiche reader, and see where they were. She was taking fencing. I took fencing!

I was on her staff again at The Leading Edge. This semester, a science fiction convention was being held on campus, and staff from The Leading Edge featured prominently in its production. I did everything she asked me to do.

Once, there was a glimmer of hope; she invited me to her house for breakfast to discuss some of the marketing for the upcoming issue and the con.

Oh, whoops, she had something more important to do. She cancelled. This was actually an important moment; it was the first time she ever broke my heart. I knew it was too good to be true!

But I doted on her, if only from a safe and somewhat anonymous distance. OK, I guess you can’t really call it “doting” if I had no interaction with her. I certainly thought about her a lot!

At the convention, there was a small ceremony where the staff gathered to congratulate one another on our success. Jenni had been instrumental in the success that year, so she was awarded a dozen red roses for her hard work. I had conspired to sit at her table.

Whoops. People being recognized moved up front to sit with the authors and staff. So I sat at the table with her Dad.

Here again, a spectacular strategic failure on my part. He knew everything about her; I could have asked him about her life at home, about their family. Nope. I just stared at Jenni, and clapped when they gave her the roses. I did manage to say a number of complimentary things about her, one that her Dad has since mentioned remembering; that Jennilyn would make a great Relief Society President someday.

Boys, pay attention; it’s important to love and respect the girl in a way that reassures her Dad that you might someday come to treasure her as much as he does.

I upped my game, and started leaving her anonymous notes on her door. Yep, you could get every student’s address, too. I recall in particular, commenting on the horseshoe that was hanging on the post of her door, that it was upside down.

She never knew it was me.

Boys, pay attention. Don’t be coy, your intent will be lost.

The Fencing Tournament! Remember, I said she had fencing? She was in the advanced class. I was a beginner. I think by now she was beginning to glean from the litter of my haphazard behavior that I had a crush on her. She was polite, but she was pretty clearly not that into me. At one point during the fencing tournament, she even suggested I walk her roommate out of the building, suggesting that we might have a lot in common.

As if. Her roommate was great, but I am pretty focused.

I watched her fence, delighted at her energy and grace. I put on a brave show, and tried not to embarrass myself, not realizing that she was really not paying the same attention to me that I paid to her.

But I was in love, and did not care.

A week later, I would make my move. To be continued ... in chapter 4.

Or look backwards at chapter 2.

Book of Mormon Stories Chapter 9

1 Nephi 9

2 And now, as I have spoken concerning these plates, behold they are not the plates upon which I make a full account of the history of my people; for the plates upon which I make a full account of my people I have given the name of Nephi; wherefore, they are called the plates of Nephi, after mine own name; and these plates also are called the plates of Nephi.

Have you ever made a full account of anything? An event, a feeling, your testimony?

3 Nevertheless, I have received a commandment of the Lord that I should make these plates, for the special purpose that there should be an account engraven of the ministry of my people.

Think about the things you've ever been asked to do; do you feel like there is a special purpose in your life? We do. You cannot know all the future outcomes of what you do now. Trust the Lord, follow his instructions.

5 Wherefore, the Lord hath commanded me to make these plates for a wise purpose in him, which purpose I know not.
6 But the Lord knoweth all things from the beginning; wherefore, he prepareth a way to accomplish all his works among the children of men; for behold, he hath all power unto the fulfilling of all his words. And thus it is. Amen.

Do you trust the Lord? How can he know all things from the beginning, and we still have agency? Do you believe the Lord "prepareth a way"?
Consider that Nephi didn't know why the Lord wanted him doing what he was doing; do you always know exactly why you're asked to do things? Have we earned your trust by now?

Our Youngest's Birthday and Baptism

When you have a million things to blog (you are behind because you've been busy and away), where do you start? I'm going with the most recent first, and then working backwards.

Sunday was a gorgeous day.
I love this picture my wife took. It captures so much about the morning that was just perfect. The river was comletely calm, crystal-see-through. There were no fishers that morning, it felt like we had all creation to ourselves. It may look like the sun is way up, but it was about 6:40am.
We are grateful that some of our friends could come, sorry for the wildly inconvenient timing. Our daughter wanted very much to be baptized on her birthday, and we very much wanted our middle son to attend (he was leaving on tour just a few hours later). Crazy-early was our only choice that solved all the problems.

My wife spent probably too much time preparing the cinnamon rolls, which my Mom then cooked and brought in the back of their car. But they were a delicious way to bring the morning to a close.
We believe in baptism by immersion, and I am grateful we were able to take full advantage of living so close to the Susquehanna river. I am glad for my daughter's joy in making her covenant of baptism.