Mission Memories......."That Means I'm Jewish"

Even though I was a returned military veteran and 25 years old as I went on my mission - there were a lot of things I was still naive to in which I helped contribute to the sometimes-notion/impression that missionaries aren't that bright.


A mission is a learning experience. But sometimes.....well.....it can be entertaining as well.....

 I didn't know all the different religions yet nor much about them.  I was brand new, serving with Elder Keyes (eyes - with a "K") in Baton Rouge.   Anyways, if you don't know, Jews put a Mezuzah on their door post (to the side of the door) on the house reminding them of the ten commandments and they often touch it, or symbolically kiss their hand and then touch them as they pass by in their goings into and out of the home to remind them to go out and come in in the name of the Lord.  This is a fancy one and very pretty with the 12 stones representing the 12 tribes (sons of Jacob/Israel) and the 12 stones worn on the breastplate of Aaron.  Not usually so decorative, but pretty nonetheless. 




Anyways, also on some doors are wreath hangars of various fashions like this one:  

 And other times they have various fancy bulbs in their porch light - sometimes looking like this....

 And still other times, they have nails left in the door from some unspecified festivity/purpose but with nothing hanging on them.

 Well.....the door we went to for this particular story had all four.  A Mezuza, a wreath holder, fancy bulbs and two nails sticking out of the door. 


I didn't know what a Mezuza was nor did I know what a wreath holder was.  No clue.  Never needed to know and never paid attention.  I knew what nails were and fancy bulbs but anyways, all this plays an important part in the exchange to follow.

So, Elder Keyes and I are tracting in Baton Rouge and this gentleman says to us at the door, "I'm not interested in what you are sharing....see that over there?" pointing in the direction of the Mezuzah but sort of towards the porch light "It means I'm Jewish." 


Me, a bit puzzled, looked at the porch light and said, "Those fancy bulbs mean you're Jewish?"  (Frick...the whole neighborhood must be Jewish! I thought.) 


"No, not that....the thing on the door!"


I looked at the wreath holder not knowing what it was....what a strange religious symbol! "Oh!" I said politely. ".....THAT means you're Jewish?....what IS that?" (I was trying to figure out how it represented the Jewish faith and all sorts of weird thoughts went through my head as I tried to fathom what this thing had to do with God).


"NO!  Not that...the thing in the middle of the door!"


There hung two empty nails.....such a mystery. 


"Oh......whatever it was....I think...it fell down...."  I began looking around for the symbol of the Jewish faith that had fallen off the door to help the poor man find the declaration of his faith in a gesture of goodwill towards men.


The poor man looked exasperated and was clearly wondering if I was stupid.  My companion looked like he was going to hurt himself trying not to laugh.  


"NOT THAT! THAT THING! RIGHT! THERRRRREEE!"  and he touched the Mezuza in the middle of the door post looking like he wanted to grab my head to show it to me.


"Oh THAAAAT!  That means you're Jewish?" 


"YES!" 


"OHHHHH! Okay....what's that?" 


He was very kind to teach me a bit about Judaism and the Mezuza. I can't say I taught him a whole lot about Christ, other than He takes the willing and not necessarily the educated.  But after this, I can never see a nails on a door, a wreath holder or sometimes the fancy bulbs in a porch light without remembering that none of those things symbolize that someone is Jewish....and start cracking up.

Second Chances.....and unbelievable miracles.....

On June 5th my wife had a miscarriage and we lost our child.

Despite all this, I felt like something was incomplete and that the child was to be born to us - maybe to have a second chance or sometime in the future but I didn't know how it was going to work out.  Something just felt not right and even the priesthood blessing indicated that this child was to be born to us though I didn't know how.

Jen's been miserable for about a week and a half. I've struggled as well.  Unable to part with a baby bassinet and the baby clothes they've been shuffled around the house for a  bit now, awkwardly and yet still uncertain of what to do with them.

Last night I asked her if her uterus was cramping and she replied "You mean the tomb?" Not knowing what to say, I could only reply to it with my dry humor and say "You mean your coffin?"    I got a dry "ha ha" to that.  Not fun times, but we tend to be more stoic as a family after all we've endured.

At any rate, she's been cramping more lately and we had to go to the doctor to find out if there was anything left behind and whether we had to remove a dead and decomposing fetus from inside her.

Today, we went to the doctor for the ultrasound and she was cramping and did not want to go to the appointment.  I couldn't just send her alone, so I went.

We finally got in and the moment of horror arrived where they actually started looking around.  Kind of horrified at what I'd see, I waited with a bit of resignation.

Finally they found it, I saw its ribcage and its little body laying sideways inside her.   The ultrasound technician said "Um....yah.....you got a complete baby in here......."

Jen sagged on the table.  It was awful to think that entire thing was going to have to come out....arms, legs, head and everything....

The ultrasound technician wiggled the instrument around and continued "And a beating heart!  You have a live baby in there!"

Jen and I tous ensemble:"WHAT?"

"Its alive!"

"Are you serious???"

"Yes!"

"No way!  Wait....WHAT?  It's alive?"

"Yes!  With a healthy heartbeat!  158 beats per minute! Going strong!"

Jen began to sob uncontrollably and was completely overwhelmed.  I was in shock and had to look at the screen again and again and again.  There was our baby, looking at us, and I could see the heart beating on the screen.

The technician put the heartbeat on the monitor so we could hear it, there it was so strong again and still.  A lot less space than before it looked like but there it was.

Wait....WHAT???

Jen was still losing it but in a good way.

Texts went out to friends and family who were stunned as we were.

Okay, so my child's been dead nearly two weeks, and today I find out that it's still alive.......I didn't know what to think or what to feel - so much all at once!

I know I want the child and am absolutely stoked, but I feel like I'm on my fourth child because I already lost my third and this is a new one!  I still know what it's like to lose a child....so surreal.  And now....I have my child "back."

The news spread fast and my sister in law accidentally spilled the beans to our kids before we got home but they were excited.  Probably the only bummer out of this was that we didn't get to tell them ourselves.

But Matthew's going to be an even bigger brother and Rachel will finally be a bigger sister.  Out of it all?  I know I want this child.  I know what I'm capable of as a father and that I can do this in our circumstance.  I came to value my children even more and became way more tolerant of their "little kid-ness" and essentially I feel like I was given a chance that we just don't ever get in life.  Not one I've heard of anyways. Ever.

I am reminded of the sacrifice of Abraham with his son Isaac and can only say that I'm grateful to know I can pass through something like this and not turn away from God, though it wasn't fun, the reality?  Hasn't quite set in yet. 

God truly does have His hand on me.  I've seen too many miracles to doubt His presence or His love.

But as for today?  The single most miraculous and surreal day of my life.  Ever. 

Now....I guess I need to go finish that baby bassinet that I saved.  I can still look forward to the baby clothes being tried out for Christmas.  What a day.

Thank you all for your prayers and love.  I have no doubt that you had a part in this wonderful miracle of miracles.

Thank you all, and God bless.

Thank you again, and God bless you again and again.

Life's crumbs....and shattered windows.....

This morning we lost our son-to-be in a miscarriage.

My wife awoke me at 5 am saying she was bleeding.  I got up, looked around and began to race to get dressed.  We called to find out if there was an ER in Redmond, the kids got up fairly quickly and Heaven blessed me to be able to put her in the van quite easily.   

Before we left, I asked her if she wanted me to give her a blessing.  She said yes.  I gave her a blessing by the authority and power of the priesthood which I hold, and I could feel that this wasn't going to be though I didn't dare accept it and hoped against hope that what I saw and felt as I gave the blessing wouldn't come to pass and that there might remain some chance of things turning around, and yet I was promised something would come to pass in the future with another child. 

It was comforting again when the military training comes out and I'm quite comfortable and trained to safely drive in an emergency - fortunately at 6am on a Sunday in a rural town, there isn't much traffic and the streets were empty. As we drove she informed me she was beginning to cramp.

We arrived at the ER in about 7 minutes or less, we were the only ones there...and Jen was quickly quickly taken in the back.  The kids and I sat out in the waiting room as they weren't prepared to handle mom, dad and two kids with a bunch of work to do.

I asked if I could go see her after a while, they said "They are doing okay, you can go back in a while." 
"They."   In these times of crisis your mind hangs on every word, every nuance to see meaning and ascertain how things go.  Friends texted me to tell me that from their experiences there was still a good chance - I hoped for the best.

When I was finally allowed back in, the nurse's attendant didn't say a word but walked back fairly lightly - more meaning inferred - wondering - wandering - waiting.   When I got back to Jen and we finally had time to talk, Jen asked me what I saw by the priesthood.

The priesthood is an amazing gift that God has given to man again in these latter days - by it God can and often does show us the future, the past, things that are, things that could be and God again speaks to man by it through the Holy Ghost - just as it was in Times of Old.

I told her that I felt it wasn't going to be good.

To me it felt as if our child had chosen not to come here yet for various reasons and had decided to wait for another time though there might be a future time.  Heaven and earth are indeed connected, but both of them have their own plans and designs, with Heaven often waiting on the desires of mankind and men's choices, and Earth waiting on the timing, plans, laws and designs of God.  In it all it is up to us to do our best to try to understand and be receptive to what comes as we try to listen to what is being whispered to us through the Spirit. 

She told me it was going to be a while and that I should take the kids to get breakfast.  I grabbed McDonald's with the kids and headed back to the Emergency Room.

When I asked if I could see Jen,they took me back.  I asked her what was going to happen.  She told me that they had already taken it out of her and it was dead.  We had lost our baby.

I lost it.   I asked her if she had seen it....what happened?

Just the other week he was so strong, I watched him do a "trampoline like bounce" inside mom and had his hands near his face with its thumb in its mouth.  The heartbeat was 160 or something like that.  And now....when it came out, it wasn't even recognizable.

When we finally got cleaned up to go, I told the kids we had lost their baby brother.  It wasn't until I mentioned that we didn't need the handcrafted bassinet I made that Matthew suddenly realized we weren't going to be having a baby.  He began to cry.  I handed him some tissues and he was sobbing about how we weren't going to have a baby - he wanted to be a big brother and was getting excited about the idea.

As we drove away, I felt so empty.  Nothing.  This was it?  I didn't get a certificate, a name, a headstone, a funeral, a memorial, a program for a memorial service......nothing.  We just drove away.  I never got to see my son.  I couldn't live like this.  No.  It couldn't end this way.

My mind began arguing that we were still having a baby on December 8th!  I realized I had to go back to say goodbye to it.

Were I not a psychology major having been trained in loss and grief, I don't know that I could handle this.  This wasn't something I wanted to do but I had to do.  There had to be some note of closure.  This was all too fast.  I asked Jen if I could turn around and go back.  We did. 

I walked into the hospital and asked if I could see the nurse and told her I needed to see what was left of my son.  I couldn't walk away with nothing and just have a trip to the ER and have it be over and not know...not see....not have anything.   She took me into a room, and the nurse brought me a container and explained to me what it was and there really wasn't much there that was distinguishable. 

I actually clutched the remains in the container to my chest sobbing "all I wanted to do was to hold you."  I was able to make out what would have become soft, soft baby skin wanting lotion and needing patting.  Just yesterday, I was at a beach with my children and asking the other children they played with what their names were as I got ideas for names.  And now....on our anniversary vacation.....nothing.

I finally left, my children have never seen dad cry and I cried on the drive back to the resort.  The sunrise on the mountains, on Sisters was beautiful, and I couldn't help but think just as we lost someone, someone else was being born today, to others this was an ordinary day....so many kinds of days and it was only 9am.

I got to the resort and informed them that I needed new linens for the bed.  They offered to take them up.  There was a lot of blood on the bedding and I didn't want some staff hauling away what little remained from the hopes of my infant son, I told them I would prefer to take it myself and I broke down and told them I had lost my son this morning. 

When we got back, Jen asked me to go make the bed before she got in there, I did however ask the children to help me make the bed.

Death is a stranger in America.  It is the only thing that awakens us from the American dream (My own quote from my studies in the psychology of loss and grief).  We run from it, shield our children from it, and avoid it and spend less time mourning than about any industrialized nation.  It wasn't always so, but the last 70 years in the US have seen our attitudes towards death change.  As my daughter came in she asked me why there was blood in the bathroom, I told her that was from the baby, and then she saw Matthew and I changing the linens and it hit her as well.

She hasn't cried, and Matthew is doing well, though I am a wreck. Jen called her sister who's had more miscarriages.  I have baby pictures from ultrasounds, a very lovingly handcrafted baby bassinet I made out of wood, and a little baby duck outfit for a newborn hanging on our bedroom door - all awaiting something to be done with them.

I'm grateful this happened at a resort rather than in my bedroom where I feel like it's a room of death.  Though the room did feel like death when we returned to it.

I texted my supervisor to tell her I might be requesting extra days off because I was supposed to go back to work on Wednesday.  I can't.  I mean I could, but that day I have to sit through a meeting with a supervisor above her that I don't really have any respect for and who's really crossed some lines at work that I'm still trying to decide what to do with.

As far as blessings go?  There's a tendency in America for Americans to be unempathetic towards those who've suffered loss.  People rush to tell you how it's a good thing, to see the blessings in it - as if someone's loss is a threat to their emotional well being and people can't just let you be sad.  We need to be sad.  Even Christ said "blessed are those who mourn, for they shall be comforted."  This is true.  Unless we mourn, we cannot be fully comforted.   I believe there are 316 standard phrases used in the American lexicon that we say to those who are mourning, and only 44 of them are encouraging, uplifting or supportive.  The remainder dismiss or disenfranchise the grieving.

For now I will just mourn and pass through this.  My children are beautiful and I love them and just now as I am writing, my darling daughter came to show me her latest ponytail venture with one hanging off her forehead and another off her left hear with those beautiful blue eyes.  My son, ever so stoic is just working on a popsicle.

At any rate, family was called and it was offered to have the kids gone so my wife and I could spend time together.  Absolutely not. I just lost a child.  I want my kids close even if we drive each other nuts.

I do feel angels around me.  Something I can sense and sometimes see.  The ones I see right now are "older" men, wise men, kindly gentlemen who are just here to be a comfort but who share my loss - quiet men who lend support.

How can Heaven mourn for us when Heaven sees the end from the beginning and live amidst such joy incomprehensible, and yet their hearts be here with us and cry when we cry, hurt when we hurt?  Its something I don't understand other than to think that a loving Heavenly Father is truly mindful of us and truly does understand us.

To "Baby Millican" who wasn't born or even fully named, we loved you though we hadn't met you and we hope that we shall yet meet you and I shall do my best as a father if Heaven and Earth combine to bring you to us once again, and to Heaven.....thank you for the gift of being able to understand others who've walked where I am now walking.

The valley of sorrow is indeed deep and long and dark and even dangerous if we stay there too long, and the corner we have just turned is a previously unknown crevice in the valley we hadn't been to before. 


But I thank Heaven for the perspective of the restored gospel and the knowledge of the purpose of this life to give us comfort in these times of sorrow that Christ himself said must needs come and for which this earth was designed.

For now, I shall close.  I'm not ready to say goodbye yet and I have hopes for one more but for now, I'm going to close. 


Thank you all and God bless.

Thank you again.  And God Bless again and always.

Signs of the Lord's Second Coming and the Last Days

I received this when I was investigating the church in 1993 from my seminary teacher.   I since typed it up and thought I would publish it here.  I'm typing this in response to the declaration floating around that the Lord's coming will be on May 21st of 2011 which we can see here is not true because of what remains to be fulfilled.  Respectfully, to those false prophets who have no authority to declare such things, let alone that scripture its self declares it will not be declared as to the date, I find they are destructors of faith and they have been deceived.  What happens to the people who go willy-nilly following after them and then this doesn't happen?  Will their hearts be hardened and they will give up, perish and fall away until it is too late?  Ahhh....the devil is a cunning worker my friends.  This is why we've been told to "Watch" and be prepared and beware of the blind leading the blind.   

Matthew 7: 20Wherefore by their ^afruits ye shall know them.

 21¶Not every one that ^asaith unto me, ^bLord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven; but he that ^cdoeth the ^dwill of my Father which is in heaven.^e

 22Many will say to me in that day, Lord, Lord, have we not ^aprophesied in thy name? and in thy ^bname have cast out devils? and in thy name done many wonderful works?

 23And then will I profess unto them, I never ^aknew you: ^bdepart from me, ye that work ^ciniquity.

 

The Lord's commentary on the Last days

REFERENCES                              COMMENTS

Matthew 24      Prophecies of the last days (Versus 21-55 refer to our time specifically)

JST Matthew

(PoGP, p.43)   

D&C 20           Summary of the judgments upon man before earth's destiny

D&C 45           Documentation of the signs of the times

D&C 88           Step by step events leading up to coming of the Savior

D&C 101

D&C 133        

D&C 38           Promises made to the righteous when judgments shall come upon the wicked

Joel 2:28-32     Further signs of the last days

Rev 6:12

Rev 16:18-21  

Book of Mormon: the events in 3 Nephi are a pattern for the Second Coming.  There are similarities between the appearance of Christ to the Nephites and the prophecies of His Second Coming.

3 Nephi 2:14-16           Lamanites become a mighty people

3 Nephi 3:22                Righteous to gather

3 Nephi 3-4                 Wars & rumors of wars

3 Nephi 6:17-18, 7:7    Increased wickedness

3 Nephi 7:14                Rejection of the Prophet

3 Nephi 8:4                  Increased skepticism of Christ's coming

3 Nephi 8:6, 10-19       Earthquakes and other disturbances

3 Nephi 8:20-23           Darkness covering the earth

3 Nephi 9:1-13, 10-12Wicked destroyed and righteous preserved

3 Nephi 11:8                Christ coming from heaven

3 Nephi 11:1-11           Christ at His temple

3 Nephi 11:14              Christ displaying His wounds

3 Nephi 23:9-14           Resurrection of the righteous

A PROPHET'S WARNING - “There are among us many loose writings predicting the calamities which are about to overtake us.  Some of these have been publicized as though they were necessary to wake up the world to the horrors about to overtake us.  Many of these are from sources upon which there cannot be unquestioned reliance....We need no such publications to be forewarned, if we were only conversant with what the scriptures have already spoken to us in plainness.” (Harold B. Lee, Conference Report, Oct. 1972 p.128, or Ensign, Jan. 1973, p. 106)

THE PROPHETIC DESTINY OF THE HOLY LAND

Prepared by Gerald N. Lund of the 70

            It should be noted that the line between history and prophecy is constantly shifting.  While one could logically divide between prophetic promises into three divisions – the fulfilled, the fulfilling,, and the yet-to-be-fulfilled – placing of specific promises in the first two is not always that easy.   Therefore, the first two areas are combined into one.  Also note that only some of the more significant references have been included.

1.  

2.I.  THE FULLFILLED AND THE FULFILLING

A. Israel will be smitten and scattered because of their wickedness

1.Lev 26:33

2.Deut 28:63-64

B. The unbelieving of the House of Judah will suffer for rejecting their messiah.

1.2 Nephi 6:9-11

2.1 Nephi 19:13-14

3.  

C. Elijah the prophet will return before Christ comes again

1.Malachi 4:5-6

2.D&C 110:13-16

D. The people of Israel will return to the Lands of their inheritance

1.Isaiah 5:26; 11:12

2.2 Nephi 21:26-29

3.D&C 39:11

E. The House of Israel will accept the covenant and be God's People again

1.Ezekiel 20:24-28; 26:25-28

2.Jeremiah 21:18-20, 31-34

3.Isaiah 59:20-21; 60:1-5

F. The “Jews” will “Begin” to believe in Christ again

1.2 Nephi 6:14; 10:7; 25:16; 30:7

2.1 Nephi 19:14

G. The Holy Land to become productive and fruitful again

1.Isaiah 30:23-25; 35:1-2

2.Jeremiah 31:2-5, 9-12; 32:15

3.Ezekiel 36:34-35

H. Jerusalem to be rebuilt and become the capitol of Israel again

1.3 Nephi 20:46

2.Zechariah 1:16-17; 2:12;  8:3; 12:6

3.Luke 21:24

I. Judah to show forth great power in battle

1.Isaiah 19:16-17

2.Zechariah 10:5-6; 12:6-8

J. Judah and Ephraim to be reunited and become one again

1.Isaiah 11:13

2.Jeremiah 3:18; 50:4-5

3.Ezekiel 37:16-17, 22

II  THE YET TO BE FULFILLED

A. Temple to be built again in Jerusalem

1.D&C 124:36-37

2.Amos 9:11

3.Zechariah 1:16

4.Ezekiel 41-48

B. The lost tribes of Israel to return, first to Zion, then Jerusalem

1.Jeremiah 16:14-15; 31:6-12

2.Isaiah 35:10

3.D&C 133:26-34

C. All nations will gather together against Jerusalem

1.Jeremiah 25:15-26

2.Ezekiel 38:1-16

3.Joel 2:1-11; 3:1-2

4.Zechariah 14:2

5.Revelation 9:1-21

D. Two prophets will prophesy in Jerusalem and help the House of Israel

1.Isaiah 51:17-20 (See JST corrections)

2.Revelation 11:1-12

E. The Savior will appear on the Mount of Olives and deliver Israel

1.Ezekiel 38:17-23

2.Zechariah 12:9-14; 13:6;  14:1-7

3.D&C 45:43-53

F. A great river will appear in Jerusalem, the Dead Sea will be healed

1.Ezekiel 47:1-12

2.Zechariah 14:8

G. Babylon and all earthly kingdoms will be overthrown and destroyed

1.Isaiah 34:1-10

2.Ezekiel 39:1-22

3.Zechariah 14:12-15

4.Revelation 18:1-24; 19:11-21

H. The New David (Jesus Christ) will rule over Israel

1.Isaiah 55:2-4

2.Jeremiah 23:5-6; 33:15-17; Hosea 3:4-5

3.Ezekiel 37:21-25, 34

4.Luke 1:32

I. Zion will be established as a world wide kingdom and Christ will reign for a thousand years

1.Isaiah 65:17-25; 66:1-14

2.Joel 3:16-21

3.Zechariah 14:116-21

4.Revelation 20:1-6

5.D&C 101:23-32

CHRIST'S APPEARANCE TO MAN BEFORE THE 2ND COMING

            When the Lord returns he will make some appearances to specific groups and then culminate his return by his appearance in great power, majesty and glory, in such a manner that all the world will see him (D&C 133:17-22; 101:22-23).  Four appearances of the Lord have particular mention by the prophets:  two of these appearances will be to the Saints; one appearance will be to the Jews; and the fourth will be his final coming to the world.

(1)THE APPARANCE AT THE CITY OF NEW JERUSALEM

(2)The Lord “shall suddenly come to his temple”  (D&C 133:2) a temple yet to be built in Jackson county, Missouri, (D&C 84:1-5; 97:10, 15-16).  Elder Charles W. Penrose said that the Lord would make his appearance first among the saints and “that appearance will be unknown to the rest of mankind.  He will come to the temple prepared for Him, and his faithful people will behold his face, hear his voice and gaze upon his glory.  From his own lips they will receive further instructions for the development and beautifying of Zion and for the extension and sure stability of His kingdom.”  (Charles W. Penrose, Millennial Star, 10 Sept. 1859, p. 582-583.

(3)THE APPEARANCE AT ADAM-ONDI-AHMAN.

(4)The Prophet Joseph Smith said that “Daniel in his seventh chapter speaks of the Ancient of Days; he means the oldest man, our father Adam, Michael.  He will call his children together and hold a council with them to prepare them for the  coming of the Son of Man.  He (Adam) is the father of the human family and presides over the spirits of all men, and all that have had the keys must stand before him in this grand council” (History of the Church 3:386-387; D&C 116).  The Lord will appear to the saints in a solemn assembly of the Priesthood to be held at Adam-ondi-Adhman in Daviess County, Missouri, attended only by those who have held the keys of the priesthood during all the gospel dispensations and by others living who are specially invited.  “This council shall precede the coming of Jesus Christ as a thief in the night, unbeknown to all the world” Joseph Fielding Smith, Way to Perfection, p. 289-291).

(5)THE APPEARANCE AT THE MOUNT OF OLIVES

            The Savior's appearance to the Jews will occur when Jerusalem and its environs are besieged by            many nations.  At the close of a long and costly war, know as the Battle of Armageddon, the   Jews will flee for safety to the Mount of Olives.  There the savior will make his appearance      (D&C 45:48-52; 77:15; 133:35; Revelation 11:1-12; Zechariah 14:1-9).

(4)THE SECOND COMING: THE APPEARANCE TO THE WHOLE WORLD

(5)As the Lord's second coming approaches, signs will mark this epochal event.  One of the last of these signs is the Sign of the Son of Man (D&C 88:92; 101:23; JSM 1:36).  Following the sign there will be “silence in Heaven for the space of half an hour, and immediately after shall the curtain of  Heaven be unfolded” and the Lord will make his glorious appearance (D&C 88:95). So great will be the glory and power of His coming that the earth will tremble, the sun shall hide his face in shame (D&C 133:40-42, 49; 101:25).  All that is corruptible shall be consumed and destroyed by the brightness of his glorious presence (D&C 5:19; 101:24-25).  The Lord will wear red apparel, signifying his great atoning sacrifice and also  his Judgments upon the wicked (D&C 133:48-51).  Both the righteous living and the celestial dead will be caught up to meet the Lord in the air to be rewarded while the wicked are destroyed (D&C 88:96-97; 101:89-91)( Manual, religion 325-325 (Doctrine and Covenants) p 404).

THE PROPHET JOSEPH SMITH ON THE SECOND COMING OF CHRIST

            “...The coming of the Son of Man never will be == never can be till the judgment spoken of for this hour are poured out;  which judgments are commenced.  Paul says, “Ye are the children of light, and not of the darkness, that that day should overtake you as a thief in the night (I Thes. 5:4-5).”  It is not for the design of the Almighty to come upon the earth and crush it and grind it to powder, but he will reveal it to His servants the prophets.

            “Judah must return, Jerusalem must be rebuilt, and the temple, and water come out from under the temple, and the waters of the Dead Sea healed.  It will take some time to rebuild the walls of the city and the temple, etc.;  and all this must be done before the Son of Man will make His appearance.  There will be wars and rumors of wars, signs in the heavens above and on the earth beneath, the sun turned into darkness and the moon to blood, earthquakes in divers places, the seas heaving beyond their bounds; then will appear one grand sign of the Son of Man in Heaven.  But what will the world do?   They will say it is a planet, a comet, etc.  But the Son of Man will come as the sign of the coming of the Son of Man, which will be as the light of the morning cometh out of the east.  (April 6, 1843.) DHC 5:336-337.

            “...The inhabitants of the earth are asleep, they know not the day of their visitations.  The Lord set the bow in the cloud for a sign that while it shall be seen, seed time and harvest, summer and winter shall not fail;  but when it shall disappear, woe to that generation, for behold the end cometh quickly.” (TPJS, p. 305).

WHY ARE WE TOLD OF THE GREAT...AND TERRIBLE EVENTS?

(1)HOPE!   In D&C 45:38 we read, “Even so it shall be in that day when they shall see all these things, then shall they know that the hour is nigh.”

(2)REWARD!   If the Saints are not to reign, for what purpose are they crowned?   In an exhortation of the Lord through his servant John he said, Behold, I come quickly: Hold fast which thou hast, that no man take thy crown.”  For he that is worthy, the Lord says, he shall be clothed in white raiment, and Christ will present our names to His Father and before angels.

(3)PREPARATION!  NOW  is the time.  Those who “have taken the Holy Spirit for their guide...shall abide the day” (D&C 45:57).  President Hinkley said in April Conference (1995), “The time has come for us to stand a little taller, to lift our eyes and stretch our minds to a greater comprehension and understanding of the grand millennial mission of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints.

“This is a time to be strong.

“It is a time to move forward without hesitation, knowing well the meaning, the breadth and the importance of our mission.

“It is a time to do what is right regardless of the consequences that might follow.

“It is a time to be found keeping the commandments.

“It is a season to reach out with kindness and love those in distress and to those who are wandering in darkness and pain.

“It is a time to be considerate and good, decent and courteous toward one another in all our relationships.  In other words, to become more like Christlike.”

Signs of the times (GOOD!) 

(A “-” afterwards means it's a bad thing or a negative event that won't be happy)

1.Spirit to be poured out on all flesh

2.Discovery and use of printing

3.Protestant reformation and age of renaissance

4.Discovery and colonizaation of America

5.Establishment of the American nation

6.Translation and printing of the bible

7.Establishment of the U.S. Constitution

8.Latter-day revelation

9.Coming forth of the Book of Mormon

10.Opposition to the Book of Mormon -

11.Restoration fo the keys/priesthood

12.Restoration of the gospel

13.Messenger to precede Second Coming

14.Church and Kingdom set up again

15.Growth of the Church

16.Gathering of Israel

17.Ten tribes to return

18.Times of gentiles being fulfilled

19.Return of Judah to Jerusalem

20.Jews to begin to believe in Christlike

21.Building of latter-day temples

22.Lord to come suddenly to His temple

23.Spirit of Elijah and genealogical research

24.Persecution of the Saints -

25.Persecution of the Jews -

26.True gospel to be preached to all the world

27.Worldly knowledge to increase

28.Scientific and inventive progress

29.Disease, plague and pestilence weep earth -

30.Elements in commotion -

31.Disasters to abound -

32.Strikes, anarchy, violence increase -

33.Latter-day wickedness

34.Spirit ceasing to strive with wicked -

35.Peace taken from the earth -

36.Angels reaping the earth -

37.Wars and rumors of wars -

38.Famines, depressons and economic turmoil -

39.Apostate darkness covers earth -

40.Many false churches in latter-days -

41.Refusal of men to believe signs of times -

42.Signs on earth and in heaven

43.Lamanites to blossom as the rose

44.Gathering at Adam-ondi-Ahman

45.Final great war to attend second coming -

46.Sorrow and fear precede and accompany second coming

47.Fall of the great and abominable church

48.Special mission in Jerusalem of two latter-day prophets

49.Wicked to be burned

50.Final restitution of all things to be completed

51.Christ to reign personally upon earth

(Bruce R. McConkie, Mormon Doctrine, page 715-734)

Temple Reflections.......

I got this in an email - don't know where it came from, but thought I'd post it here in an attempt to save it somewhere on the World Wide Web.....

A few months after my accident, I got a call from a headhunter telling me that he had a position for which he wanted me to interview.  I was a little surprised by the call since I wasn't actively looking for a job at the time.  As a matter of fact, I was still learning to walk again and use my reconstructed hands.  I politely declined and thought that was it. 

It wasn't.

The man called again and every time I told him why I was unable to accept a job at the moment, he kept telling me that it wasn't important.  After a while I decided to go on the interview. I f nothing else, it would stop the annoying phone calls every few days.

The interview was with one of the largest HVAC contractors in Houston .  I've never worked for a contractor before and, quite frankly, contractors and engineers often find themselves at complete odds with each other.  I knew for a fact that, in my years of experience, I had been in more than one shouting match with a few project managers at this firm..

The interviewer brought me into a conference room and expressed his thanks for me coming in.  He told me that I had come recommended to him as someone uniquely qualified for the job he had.  He described the job and, I had to admit, it sounded like a pretty good gig.  As a matter of fact, if I had to describe my dream job, this would be it.

I started asking questions about the firm... what kind of projects they were working on and so forth.  They were one of the biggest contractors in Houston and so he ran down a pretty impressive resume of projects.  Then he said, "Oh... and we're doing this church.  It's the strangest church you've ever seen."  I'd designed some pretty strange churches in my time.  One of them was made entirely of pink glass.  When you're especially bored some time, you should try and run down the thermal transfer properties of pink glass.  If you find out, get back to me on it because I never was able to figure it out.

The interviewer continued with his description of the strange church. "Another weird thing is that they're spending WAYYYY too much money on this thing.  You know how, whenever we do a church, we're asked to figure out ways to cut costs?  Well, not on this job.  In fact, they keep asking us for ways we can make it even better" 

(It's called 'value engineering'.  It happens on almost every job when the owner gets hit with the sticker price of the project and we have to go back and try and work with contractors to hold down prices and yet still keep in a modicum of quality... that's where the shouting matches usually occur.  Churches are especially notorious at this game and the end result is usually a facade of flash over substance.  You build this really impressive-looking church and pray that the next big wind won't come along and blow it all down).

Then the interviewer said something that sealed the deal.  "...and the strangest thing of all is that we're not going to even be allowed back in this church to fix any problems.  Only members with a special piece of paper will be allowed in."

I fished into my wallet and pulled out my temple recommend, "Is this the piece of paper you're talking about?" I asked. 

And so I went to work on helping to build the Houston Temple .

The first job meeting was one of the most bizarre experiences of my life.  We all met in a little shack on the temple building site.  It was an odd sensation to look out at earth moving equipment shoving mounds of dirt around and get tears in your eyes.

I didn't tell anyone at the meeting that I was LDS.  For one reason, I didn't want them to think I was going to come off as a know-it-all..  Another reason is that there were some pretty strong protests against building this temple and I wanted to see where everyone stood on the issue.  You kind of want to know where all the land mines are before you go traipsing off into the clover. 

You may or may not know this but the church sends its own project manager to the site when a temple is built.  It's his job to make sure that the specifications are followed in every way.  As it happened, the church's representative, a man named Leon , was called away to Salt Lake and so the project manager for the general contractor got up and started the meeting.

" Leon 's been called away to Salt Lake and so I'll be running the meeting."  He looked around and his eye settled on the Plumbing Contractor, "Gill, why don't you offer us an opening prayer?"

My jaw dropped.  First of all, prayers just aren't the standard way that construction meetings are called to order.  And another thing is that, I'd known Gill for fifteen years and anyone even mildly acquainted with the man was aware that he was incapable of stringing four words together without cussing twice. 

"This is going to be some prayer,"  I thought... it was.  Gill bowed his head and folded his hands and gave a prayer like he'd been giving them in sacrament meeting his entire life.  We were grateful for the opportunity to work on the temple.  We were mindful of the sacrifices of The Saints.  We prayed for safety and harmony among the builders and we consecrated and dedicated our actions to The Lord. 

Gill ended his prayer and the General Contractor went on with the agenda.  I wasn't really paying attention, however, because I was still dumbstruck, staring at Gill, and wondering what had happened to him.  I was still staring at Gill when the agenda came to me and I was asked to introduce myself to the group. 

There was a bit of a pause when I got caught still staring, open-mouthed, at Gill. Then everyone started to laugh.

"It's in the specifications," explained the general contractor, "we have to pray before every meeting"

Knowing the crowd, I asked, "And none of you tried to negotiate out of that?"


"Well, we did grumble for a while and then Leon started making us sing an opening hymn as well"

I wished I had accepted the job sooner, I might have been able to see that.

I soon found out that I didn't need to tell anyone I was LDS, they all knew and many times a contractor would sidle up to me to ask me something about my religion or the significance of something in the temple. 

"What's up with the twelve cows and the big Jacuzzi?" one would ask. 
 
 "Is that Gabriel up there with a trumpet?"  (Oh... little known fact but if you'll take a pair of binoculars with you and get far enough away so you can see it from the proper angle, you'll notice a lightning rod sticking out of  Moroni's head)

I took to bringing my scriptures with me so that I could explain the significance of different things and point to their Biblical foundation. 

One question was my personal favorite, "Where's the counting room?"  Remember the churches I told you about that I'd designed?  Well one thing that never got 'value engineered' was the counting room.  It was where they kept and counted the donations and it was always built like a bank vault.

"We don't have a counting room in temples", I said. 

"Why not?"

"We don't take in any donations at the temple"

"You mean to tell me that you put all this money into a building and you don't ever get a nickel out of it?" 

"Yeah, that's pretty much the case"

The contractor went away shaking his head.  No doubt wondering how anyone as foolish as these Mormons had ever amassed enough money to build such wonderful buildings.

Of all my experiences, only one was what I would have categorized as 'odd'.  With an opening prayer at each meeting, design conferences went about pretty much like PEC meetings.  There was a spirit of brotherhood that just wasn't normally present in construction shacks.

One day, however, the meeting got a little out of hand.  Some voices were raised and anger entered the room.  When it made its appearance, I was surprised to notice a letdown that I recognized as The Spirit leaving the room.  It made me sad. I looked about the table and I could tell that others were experiencing the same letdown. 

It was then that the copier behind me started spitting out blank sheets of paper. Nobody was at the copier and yet it churned out about a dozen sheets of paper and then stopped.  It took everyone by surprise and it completely diffused the argument that was going on.  Someone made a small joke, everyone laughed and the meeting went on.  Little by little I felt the warmth of  The Spirit return.

After the meeting, I was going over some items with the General Contractor.  I had to make a few copies and so I went to the copier.  There was a sign over the copier instructing the sub-contractors to write down the number of copies they make so that their companies can be backcharged.  Thinking that I was making a joke, I pointed to the sign and said, "Are you going to give the angels a discount on the copies they made today?"  The general contractor looked at me and said, "You know?  Strange things like that happen around here quite often"

As the temple neared its completion, the general contractor and I had occasion to chat one more time.  I knew that he was a staunch Baptist, one of the churches in fact that was so vocal in its protest over our building a temple in Houston .  Over the months, we had become friends, and so I felt no qualms in asking him just what his feelings were, as a Baptist, building a Mormon temple.  I'll never forget what he told me.



"In ancient times", he said, "building work was overseen by guilds.  The guild masters were the ones who saw to it that the integrity of the craft over which they labored was the best it could be.  If you wanted to enter the guild you had to begin as an apprentice and dedicate long years with little or no pay.  The master under whom you labored, gave you room and board and your tools.  Eventually, you became a journeyman in the guild and you got paid.  However, if you wanted to become a master of the guild, you had to present a sample of your work to be judged by the other masters.  It had to be a work of outstanding beauty and flawless quality for it was the work by which your skills would be judged.  It had to be a work that would weather the ages and it was called, 'a masterpiece'" 

The contractor continued, "Every building I've ever built has been one where money won out over quality.  I've never been able to do the best I'm capable of because of budget restraints..  If I'm grateful for one thing, it's that you Mormons don't skimp when it comes to your temples.  For once, I'm able to build to the quality I'm really capable of" 

Then he looked out over the temple and his gaze came back to me.  His eyes were tearing up a bit and he swept his hand back towards the temple and his voice got a little reverent, "This is my masterpiece," he said. 

"I've been building buildings for almost thirty years.  I have been doing it so long, in fact, that they are beginning to tear down buildings that I was sure would live as a testament to my presence long after I was gone from this earth." 

I'm really grateful I had a chance to work on The Houston Temple.

Ant Farm:Day 4/5

These ants suck.  They don't do anything.  They hang out in the wood hole for the skybridge - about the most entertainment I get is blowing them out of the hole from the tube and watching them charge back into the hole and then realize it just blasted them out - get second thoughts - run away - not know what to do except hang out in the hole - run back - remember getting blown out - run away - over and over again.  Its mildly amusing.  I think I'll seal it up a  tiny bit better and let the harvester ants go to work when they get here......

Ant Farm! Day 2!

Okay...so I think the ants in the "farm" aren't the "digging" type of ants.  I think we got a few different types in there too.  But they just pass by each other.  I tried to give them a hint by digging a hole with a knitting needle - but...to no avail.  They spend a LOT of time preening their antennae too.  I know ants are typically female but these are like high-maintenance-lazy ants.

So the big ones just hang out in the tunnel....the little one I think got drunk on fermenting Twinkie and is just sitting on it moving rreeeeaaaallllll slow and just looks....drunk / stoned....so far not much happening.

I just ordered some harvester ants from www.antsalive.com.

ANT FARM! Wood Shop! Do it yourself!

So - we got a bit of an ant problem in our house....which the kids have resorted to catching them, with my son putting them in the "cockpits" of lego-spaceships he was building so you could see them through the windows of the spaceships. We had our own full blown ant-air-force/space-force around here as he had a good ten or so with two and three ants apiece in them.

Ants are pretty darned cool, when you're five.  So for a get-together with my mom at a restaurant, my kids decided to give her a "present" of a lego-space-ship with ants in it.  At the dinner table.  In the restaurant. I had no idea.  Of course the lego-space-ship broke apart and the ants "got out" and my kids were scurrying around on the floor of the restaurant looking for the ants while my mom's freaking out wondering what she just got dumped on her.  


Anyways, a trip to the science store showed ant-farms were $32 for ONE - and a large one?  $45!!!!  Mmmmmm - no.   Not when dad can make them at home.  A trip to Lowes Hardware store and one more to Home Depot for $25 for four plates of acrylic, two 2"x3"x8' (Y'all reading overseas or even to our north or south...okay - NON americans - I don't know what that is in metrics - if you must convert it you can do it here ) and voila I had two that were way bigger for less AND I got an excuse to use my tools....ahhhhhh to be a man and create with my hands.  I just gotta build.....something about when I'm done having something behind I can see and touch and hold. 

The hardest part was I don't have a table saw (or a radial arm saw) but I do have a circular saw.  So - I needed to cut grooves to insert/recess the acrylic into which normally on a table saw you'd just drop your blade down and then run your wood across.  I had to get creative with a handy portable workbench dad gave me and a block of wood to run the circular saw across it - but other than that - it was pretty easy.  If anyone wants to see it - here it is below in photos you can click on and embiggen.

looks like a kitchen...acts like a workshop...

sawdust on the floor freshening the air in the house...

the first two pieces together with clear acrylic in between

1/2" x 3/8" "doorway" to the "skybridge" I built in the exotic ant-mansion

Two ends on....

Project complete on the kitchen counter with West Wing and East Wing visible

exotic sky-bridge with a commanding view of the sugar-jar and Mountain Dew Repository - every Ant's dream!

there's actually an ant in there...with a science experiment in the background - Oh Horror of Horrors! 

These are the ants that were diverted from the Space Program to a work-camp. 

ahhhhh....kitchen floor mess....

brave trooper - I named her "Sojourner" - exploring the ant-mansion.

Actually....she hung out there for 20 minutes preening her antannae....it was kind of annoying....maybe she was enjoying the view of the sugar jar...

project fully separated apart....

individual ant-mansion unit - this is the West Wing - cost for one? $12.50 and some nice memories

It was funny tonight as we had family prayer and I thought of all the things I've built for our family.  Beds.  Modifications to the cars.  Ant farms.  More beds.  Shelves....nothing too fancy but still its nice to be able to build with my hands....   I did clean the kitchen up though with the new vacuum.....

I hope these are the kinds of ants that dig and not just the types that run around.....if they are the kind that just run around but don't dig I might have to order some kick-ass ants to dump in there and eat their sorry behinds and dig some tunnels....