The Aftermath of Pres Packer's talk

Be Prepared! The fact that there has been so much controversy over this talk means ONE thing. Boy are we in for a fight!

There's no backing down from here. You're on one side or the other, and you had better know now which one it is!

Supporters on both sides will be making themselves known VERY quickly.

Passion Parties, Pres. Packer, and my Life's Mission

Many have heard of Pres. Boyd K Packer's (Quorum of the 12 Apostles of the LDS Church) talk last Sunday. All I have to say to his talk is AMEN! He is a powerful Speaker and is OFTEN attacked by specifically the Gay/Lesbian community for his assertiveness on speaking out against immorality. However, “What I the Lord have spoken, I have spoken, and I excuse not myself; and though the heavens and the earth pass away, my word shall not pass away, but shall all be fulfilled, whether by mine own voice or by the voice of my servants, it is the same.” (D&C 1:38.) Therefore, he stands by what he has said since “We believe that a man must be called of God, by prophecy, and by the laying on of hands, by those who are in authority to preach the Gospel and administer in the ordinances thereof.” (A of F 1:5.) And this is how Pres Packer has been ordained thereby becoming one of God's servants who may speak for Him.

Here is Another AWESOME talk .....

Anyway, I think that those who are living contrary to God's Laws always take offense when someone hints that what they are choosing is "wrong":

1 Nephi 16:2-3

2 And it came to pass that I said unto them that I knew that I had spoken (a) hard things against the wicked, according to the truth; and the righteous have I justified, and testified that they should be lifted up at the last day; wherefore, the (b) guilty taketh the (c) truth to be hard, for it (d) cutteth them to the very center.
3 And now my brethren, if ye were righteous and were willing to hearken to the truth, and give heed unto it, that ye might (a) walk uprightly before God, then ye would not murmur because of the truth, and say: Thou speakest hard things against us.

I thought this passage of scripture was great timing! This past weekend, I was able to hear the words of our Prophets and Apostles at all 4 sessions of General Conference. I found myself humbled during many of the talks as I was taught of Christ's atonement and finding peace & happiness during my trials. I plan to work on my temple attendance and not complaining when it gets tough. Both of these I'm sure will prove to be difficult, but I am up for the challenge and hope to gain more faith as I strive to become more like Him.

What led up to these verses? What are the hard things spoken of?
After Lehi taught his family about the olive tree and tree of life, Nephi inquired of the Lord. Being grieved because of what he had seen, he talked with his brethern, Laman and Lamuel. Nephi spoke of the symbolism of between the olive tree and the House of Israel, as well as the tree of life.

A cross reference of the word "guilty" states this:
John 3: 20 (19-21).
20 For every one that doeth (a) evil (b) hateth the light, neither cometh to the light, lest his deeds should be reproved.

And a cross reference of the word "truth" states:
Prov. 15: 10.
10 (a) Correction is grievous unto him that forsaketh the way: and he that hateth (b) reproof shall (c) die.

"These references remind me of a talk from General Conference (I don't remember who). He said to learn from the past or go through it yourself. We have been given the scriptures as a tool to guide our lives. The pride cycle is a reoccuring theme in the scriptures and still happens today. If we do not strive to humbly keep the commandments, we will fall into the same awful traps of sin to truth that makes them feel guilty for their choices."

Anyhow, this is how I feel about what Pres Packer has said and how people in the "other" communities are reacting to it.

Bringing me on to the topic of Passion Parties.

I was talking with Genelle yesterday on the way home from my party in Roy, UT which didn't bring the monetary profit I was hoping for. We were discussing what I consider success in my business, and I told her that I consider it a success any time I can get anyone to think outside the box. And it's true.

I didn't join Passion Parties to make money per se. I did it because I believe in the need for many people to get outside of their "Box" or "Bubble" and give "different" a chance.

You don't have to swing from "moral" to "immoral" but that's just it: Besides what I said above, what exactly is appropriate or inappropriate? The LDS Church teaches of fidelity, and appropriate intimate activities between Husband and Wife. The Proclamation on the Family defines what "Mormons" believe in terms of Family and Marriage.

However, I believe that many are uninformed on what is acceptable in the privacy of their bedroom and what is not.

There is NOTHING that speaks against Husband and Wife enjoying themselves in a mutually satisfying environment. You can use candles, massage, and yes, even sex toys if that is what you choose TOGETHER. I have my other blog for my soap box on this topic, and don't want to go into it much more on this one.

What I am simply trying to say here is that my goal with Passion Parties is not to sell sex toys. It's to help people be comfortable with thinking outside the box, being open minded, and not closing themselves off to the things they don't understand. Ignorance breeds fear. Fear breeds panic. Panic leads to forgetting our humanity. There are things out there that are without question immoral and wrong. Being open minded and thinking outside of the box does NOT mean opening yourself to immorality. It simply means educating yourself and making informed decisions.

It's like dieting. If you are too restrictive, you are likely to eventually indulge beyond healthy limits when you can't take the restrictions anymore. However, if you educate yourself about the spiritually/emotionally nutritional elements of different indulgences and let yourself have a lesser of the evils "treat" once in a while, you are less likely to rebel and engage in destructive indulgences.

I see myself struggling to find more than one word to describe what I am trying to say now, which means it's time to end this particular post. I hope you see and understand where I am going with this.

And keep it up Pres. Packer!!! We ♥ you!

The Beginning of the End and other thoughts on my Beliefs from this week

Next week is Easter. For us "Mormons" it is also General Conference. This is a 2 day event where we spend from 10 am until Noon, and then 2 pm until 4 pm each day (Saturday and Sunday) listening to those we consider our Religious Leaders (we refer to them as General Authorities.)

This particular General Conference eludes to be significant. I believe that this past week has marked a significant point in history with the Health care Bill passed by Congress. I only know a little about the exact details of the Bill. However, what I have learned leads me to believe that this Bill is more or less Unconstitutional.

For Members of the LDS Church who know their "Church History" and the things that have been written by Our Leaders throughout the past 2 centuries, this is a key point in what we believe will transpire prior to "The End of the World." ( I am using a lot of general terms.... I am not a "doomsday/apocalypse/end of existence" type of person)

Here's what I'm getting at: I believe that this is the beginning of "The End." The end of what exactly, I do not know. But I do believe that "The End" will encompass the America that we know changing DRASTICALLY. The History of the world shows several time frames where things have happened similar to how things are happening right now. The United States of America are at a point where other countries have been at one time or another. And in all of the other instances the outcome was a complete breakdown before things were rebuilt. And when they were rebuilt it was always as a completely different country.... or multiple countries.

Anyway it happens we are basically guaranteed that this situation we are currently in is going to decline. And eventually be drastic.

There are Scholars out there who have believed for some time now that it will be a complete break down resulting in a Civil War and eventually the United States will be divided and separated into several different Countries' territories.

However you choose to view it. It looks like a good time to take into consideration the things written in the "Book Of Revelations" (New Testament of the Bible.)

One thing David and I have discussed recently is that it speaks of the "Mark of the Beast in their hands and on their foreheads."

Throughout my life, I have come to understand through the teachings I have received, that this will entail some sort of mandatory bar coding system insisted upon by the government. In Revelations, John warns against accepting this system. As David and I were discussing this the other day, he commented that he believes that many of our Faith, who know the warning will still choose to comply. Let this be my "Two Cents" that those of you who believe in the "Book of Revelations" consider the warning it contains if this scenario ever arises.

In the mean time this is a good time to take Food Storage very seriously. Also make sure for those of you who are LDS, that you ARE paying your tithing.

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Another thing I want to touch on quickly is "Keeping the Sabbath Day Holy." Many view it as specific to "Mormons." However, it is in fact one of the original 10 Commandments, dating back in Christian Beliefs AND Non Christian Beliefs to Moses.

I have been working really hard the past month or so to take this to heart, and use the "Sabbath" which for us is Sunday, as a day of rest. I do not do laundry or any cleaning (beyond basic maintenance) on Sunday, if I can help it. I try to get the grocery shopping, laundry and cleaning done by the time I go to bed Saturday night so that Sunday can be a peaceful day.

I don't know how much it has helped us as a Family. However, I do know that in light of David's recent escalation in outbursts, I believe it to be the reason that I am able to remain calmer, and handle the situation rationally and without loosing control myself.