Trials & Redemption (Unedited Institute Notes)

Have you ever felt:   

misunderstood   
no hope   
betrayed   
really sad   
lose of loved ones   
alone   
   
the atonement   
comfort, empower,    
You can turn to Christ in all things.   
   
Stirring   
Thomas Marsh   
President of the Quorum of the Twelve   
Joseph Smith sent many of the twelve on missions   
   
discontentment   
apostasy - new prophet   
D&C 112 revelation for Thomas Marsh   
10 Be thou humble; and the Lord thy God shall lead thee by the hand, and give thee answer to thy prayers.   
11 I know thy heart, and have heard thy prayers concerning thy brethren. Be not partial towards them in love above many others, but let thy love be for them as for thyself; and let thy love abound unto all men, and unto all who love my name.   
12 And pray for thy brethren of the Twelve. Admonish them sharply for my name’s sake, and let them be admonished for all their sins, and be ye faithful before me unto my name.   
   
15 Exalt not yourselves; rebel not against my servant Joseph; for verily I say unto you, I am with him, and my hand shall be over him; and the keys which I have given unto him, and also to youward, shall not be taken from him till I come.   
16 Verily I say unto you, my servant Thomas, thou art the man whom I have chosen to hold the keys of my kingdom, as pertaining to the Twelve, abroad among all nations   
   
Don't worry about other peoples' stewardship.   
   
Doubt cause us to inch away.   
   
Testimony of the Prophet   
confirmation with polyngomy   
personal revelation is vital.   
   
Liberty Jail   
False accusations by apostate members.   
four months   
   
D&C 121:1-6   
1 O God, where art thou? And where is the pavilion that covereth thy hiding place?   
2 How long shall thy hand be stayed, and thine eye, yea thy pure eye, behold from the eternal heavens the wrongs of thy people and of thy servants, and thine ear be penetrated with their cries?   
3 Yea, O Lord, how long shall they suffer these wrongs and unlawful oppressions, before thine heart shall be softened toward them, and thy bowels be moved with compassion toward them?   
4 O Lord God Almighty, maker of heaven, earth, and seas, and of all things that in them are, and who controllest and subjectest the devil, and the dark and benighted dominion of Sheol—stretch forth thy hand; let thine eye pierce; let thy pavilion be taken up; let thy hiding place no longer be covered; let thine ear be inclined; let thine heart be softened, and thy bowels moved with compassion toward us.   
5 Let thine anger be kindled against our enemies; and, in the fury of thine heart, with thy sword avenge us of our wrongs.   
6 Remember thy suffering saints, O our God; and thy servants will rejoice in thy name forever.   
   
Where art thou?   
Why can't I understand you?   
How long do I have to suffer?   
   
Took a year to recover from a round of chemo because she doesn't have the enzyme to metabolize the chemotherapy   
grant me patience and I need it now.   
   
Endure well   
become bitter or better   
Right perspective   
   
Outward controllable   
inward overwhelming   
   
D&C 122   
7 And if thou shouldst be cast into the pit, or into the hands of murderers, and the sentence of death passed upon thee; if thou be cast into the deep; if the billowing surge conspire against thee; if fierce winds become thine enemy; if the heavens gather blackness, and all the elements combine to hedge up the way; and above all, if the very jaws of hell shall gape open the mouth wide after thee, know thou, my son, that all these things shall give thee experience, and shall be for thy good.   
8 The Son of Man hath descended below them all. Art thou greater than he?   
9 Therefore, hold on thy way, and the priesthood shall remain with thee; for their bounds are set, they cannot pass. Thy days are known, and thy years shall not be numbered less; therefore, fear not what man can do, for God shall be with you forever and ever.   
   
9 Therefore, hold on thy way, and the priesthood shall remain with thee; for their bounds are set, they cannot pass.    
Thy days are known, and thy years shall not be numbered less; therefore,    
fear not what man can do, for God shall be with you forever and ever.   
God knows everything about us, having a plan.   
   
Shake off the dust   
the dust of life's experience   
   
Mark 6:11 And whosoever shall not receive you, nor hear you, when ye depart thence, shake off the dust under your feet for a testimony against them. Verily I say unto you, It shall be more tolerable for Sodom and Gomorrha in the day of judgment, than for that city.   
   
Liberty, a prison temple?   
a place of learning.   
spiritual   
revelatory   
experience   
   
You can have sacred more revelatory experiences in any situation good and bad,   
Every experience can be redemptive   
God can turn any prison into a temple.   
   
Alvin Smith   
His mother described him as "a youth of singular goodness of disposition," whose "nobleness and generosity" blessed those around him "every hour of his existence."   
When Alvin died, the family asked a Presbyterian minister in Palmyra, New York, to officiate at his funeral. As Alvin had not been a member of the minister’s congregation, the clergyman asserted in his sermon that Alvin could not be saved. William Smith, Joseph’s younger brother, recalled: “[The minister] … intimated very strongly that [Alvin] had gone to hell, for Alvin was not a church member, but he was a good boy and my father did not like it.”   
   
D&C   
Section 137   
A vision given to Joseph Smith the Prophet, in the temple at Kirtland, Ohio, January 21, 1836. The occasion was the administration of ordinances in preparation for the dedication of the temple.   
1–6, The Prophet sees his brother Alvin in the celestial kingdom; 7–9, The doctrine of salvation for the dead is revealed; 10, All children are saved in the celestial kingdom   
   
1 The heavens were opened upon us, and I beheld the celestial kingdom of God, and the glory thereof, whether in the body or out I cannot tell.   
2 I saw the transcendent beauty of the gate through which the heirs of that kingdom will enter, which was like unto circling flames of fire;   
3 Also the blazing throne of God, whereon was seated the Father and the Son.   
4 I saw the beautiful streets of that kingdom, which had the appearance of being paved with gold.   
5 I saw Father Adam and Abraham; and my father and my mother; my brother Alvin, that has long since slept;   
6 And marveled how it was that he had obtained an inheritance in that kingdom, seeing that he had departed this life before the Lord had set his hand to gather Israel the second time, and had not been baptized for the remission of sins   
7 Thus came the voice of the Lord unto me, saying: All who have died without a knowledge of this gospel, who would have received it if they had been permitted to tarry, shall be heirs of the celestial kingdom of God;   
8 Also all that shall die henceforth without a knowledge of it, who would have received it with all their hearts, shall be heirs of that kingdom;   
9 For I, the Lord, will judge all men according to their works, according to the desire of their hearts.   
10 And I also beheld that all children who die before they arrive at the years of accountability are saved in the celestial kingdom of heaven.   
   
Mother & Father was not dead during the time of the vision.   
   
Salvation is determined by the desires of men.   
Justice & mercy is truly balanced perfectly.   
   
1840   
Baptism for the dead was first revealed in a funeral that Joseph Smith spoke at.   
The saints were excited in the introduction, practicing it without order.   
D&C 124 formalizes Baptism for the dead.   
   
D&C 127:5-7; 128:8   
proper recording with ordinance performance by the one holding the priesthood authority   
D&C 128:6-7   
records are part of book used at judgment day   
D&C 128:15, 17-18   
   
   
M Russell Ballard   
Responsibility given to a child   
Two years later, Joseph F., along with his family and faithful mother, Mary Fielding Smith, left his home in Nauvoo for Winter Quarters. Although not yet eight years old, Joseph F. was required to drive one of the oxteams from Montrose, Iowa, to Winter Quarters and then later on to the Salt Lake Valley, arriving when he was almost 10. I hope you boys and young men are listening and will realize the responsibility and expectation placed on Joseph F. during his boyhood.   
   
He endured a lot of death in his life; losing his father, mother, & daughter.   
That year was particularly painful for him. He grieved over the death toll in the Great World War that continued to climb to over 20 million people killed. Additionally, a flu pandemic was spreading around the world, taking the lives of as many as 100 million people.   
   
& many other family members   
   
And so it was on October 3, 1918, having experienced intense sorrow over the millions who had died in the world through war and disease as well as the deaths of his own family members, President Smith received the heavenly revelation known as “the vision of the redemption of the dead.”   
   
Read section 138 of Doctrine and Covenants with this introduction.

28 February 2019

Yesterday evening I joined two challenges on Habitica. It did not immediately change my account, so I did not worry about it; however, I noticed as I was checking off my dailies before I went to sleep a new one, saying draw for five minutes. The two challenges that I joined are a drawing one & a writing one. 

The drawing challenge is to do a drawing each week for a month. I took five minutes to draw, continuing my drawing of my Nike shoe. Having to get use to AutoDesk Sketchbook again, I did not make many marks. 

The writing challenge formalized my goals, planning to network with publications for opportunities to write articles.

Recently I have been playing with character design in Habitica because I bought every thing for Mage, Healer, and Rogue. Stats and money are not interests anymore. I might draw the characters for my challenge. My characters are below. The top two are my recent designs. I designed Jessica's a while ago.

My mind was all over the place at work today. Many things were requiring attention. I had to coordinate inspections, answer QC item inquiries, and deliver/compose many documents for various people & purposes.

We actually made it on time to institute this week, and we did our new routine of grocery shopping.

The following are my unedited institute notes: A lot of it are quotations.

Have you ever felt:   

misunderstood   
no hope   
betrayed   
really sad   
lose of loved ones   
alone   
   
the atonement   
comfort, empower,    
You can turn to Christ in all things.   
   
Stirring   
Thomas Marsh   
President of the Quorum of the Twelve   
Joseph Smith sent many of the twelve on missions   
   
discontentment   
apostasy - new prophet   
D&C 112 revelation for Thomas Marsh   
10 Be thou humble; and the Lord thy God shall lead thee by the hand, and give thee answer to thy prayers.   
11 I know thy heart, and have heard thy prayers concerning thy brethren. Be not partial towards them in love above many others, but let thy love be for them as for thyself; and let thy love abound unto all men, and unto all who love my name.   
12 And pray for thy brethren of the Twelve. Admonish them sharply for my name’s sake, and let them be admonished for all their sins, and be ye faithful before me unto my name.   
   
15 Exalt not yourselves; rebel not against my servant Joseph; for verily I say unto you, I am with him, and my hand shall be over him; and the keys which I have given unto him, and also to youward, shall not be taken from him till I come.   
16 Verily I say unto you, my servant Thomas, thou art the man whom I have chosen to hold the keys of my kingdom, as pertaining to the Twelve, abroad among all nations   
   
Don't worry about other peoples' stewardship.   
   
Doubt cause us to inch away.   
   
Testimony of the Prophet   
confirmation with polyngomy   
personal revelation is vital.   
   
Liberty Jail   
False accusations by apostate members.   
four months   
   
D&C 121:1-6   
1 O God, where art thou? And where is the pavilion that covereth thy hiding place?   
2 How long shall thy hand be stayed, and thine eye, yea thy pure eye, behold from the eternal heavens the wrongs of thy people and of thy servants, and thine ear be penetrated with their cries?   
3 Yea, O Lord, how long shall they suffer these wrongs and unlawful oppressions, before thine heart shall be softened toward them, and thy bowels be moved with compassion toward them?   
4 O Lord God Almighty, maker of heaven, earth, and seas, and of all things that in them are, and who controllest and subjectest the devil, and the dark and benighted dominion of Sheol—stretch forth thy hand; let thine eye pierce; let thy pavilion be taken up; let thy hiding place no longer be covered; let thine ear be inclined; let thine heart be softened, and thy bowels moved with compassion toward us.   
5 Let thine anger be kindled against our enemies; and, in the fury of thine heart, with thy sword avenge us of our wrongs.   
6 Remember thy suffering saints, O our God; and thy servants will rejoice in thy name forever.   
   
Where art thou?   
Why can't I understand you?   
How long do I have to suffer?   
   
Took a year to recover from a round of chemo because she doesn't have the enzyme to metabolize the chemotherapy   
grant me patience and I need it now.   
   
Endure well   
become bitter or better   
Right perspective   
   
Outward controllable   
inward overwhelming   
   
D&C 122   
7 And if thou shouldst be cast into the pit, or into the hands of murderers, and the sentence of death passed upon thee; if thou be cast into the deep; if the billowing surge conspire against thee; if fierce winds become thine enemy; if the heavens gather blackness, and all the elements combine to hedge up the way; and above all, if the very jaws of hell shall gape open the mouth wide after thee, know thou, my son, that all these things shall give thee experience, and shall be for thy good.   
8 The Son of Man hath descended below them all. Art thou greater than he?   
9 Therefore, hold on thy way, and the priesthood shall remain with thee; for their bounds are set, they cannot pass. Thy days are known, and thy years shall not be numbered less; therefore, fear not what man can do, for God shall be with you forever and ever.   
   
9 Therefore, hold on thy way, and the priesthood shall remain with thee; for their bounds are set, they cannot pass.    
Thy days are known, and thy years shall not be numbered less; therefore,    
fear not what man can do, for God shall be with you forever and ever.   
God knows everything about us, having a plan.   
   
Shake off the dust   
the dust of life's experience   
   
Mark 6:11 And whosoever shall not receive you, nor hear you, when ye depart thence, shake off the dust under your feet for a testimony against them. Verily I say unto you, It shall be more tolerable for Sodom and Gomorrha in the day of judgment, than for that city.   
   
Liberty, a prison temple?   
a place of learning.   
spiritual   
revelatory   
experience   
   
You can have sacred more revelatory experiences in any situation good and bad,   
Every experience can be redemptive   
God can turn any prison into a temple.   
   
Alvin Smith   
His mother described him as "a youth of singular goodness of disposition," whose "nobleness and generosity" blessed those around him "every hour of his existence."   
When Alvin died, the family asked a Presbyterian minister in Palmyra, New York, to officiate at his funeral. As Alvin had not been a member of the minister’s congregation, the clergyman asserted in his sermon that Alvin could not be saved. William Smith, Joseph’s younger brother, recalled: “[The minister] … intimated very strongly that [Alvin] had gone to hell, for Alvin was not a church member, but he was a good boy and my father did not like it.”   
   
D&C   
Section 137   
A vision given to Joseph Smith the Prophet, in the temple at Kirtland, Ohio, January 21, 1836. The occasion was the administration of ordinances in preparation for the dedication of the temple.   
1–6, The Prophet sees his brother Alvin in the celestial kingdom; 7–9, The doctrine of salvation for the dead is revealed; 10, All children are saved in the celestial kingdom   
   
1 The heavens were opened upon us, and I beheld the celestial kingdom of God, and the glory thereof, whether in the body or out I cannot tell.   
2 I saw the transcendent beauty of the gate through which the heirs of that kingdom will enter, which was like unto circling flames of fire;   
3 Also the blazing throne of God, whereon was seated the Father and the Son.   
4 I saw the beautiful streets of that kingdom, which had the appearance of being paved with gold.   
5 I saw Father Adam and Abraham; and my father and my mother; my brother Alvin, that has long since slept;   
6 And marveled how it was that he had obtained an inheritance in that kingdom, seeing that he had departed this life before the Lord had set his hand to gather Israel the second time, and had not been baptized for the remission of sins   
7 Thus came the voice of the Lord unto me, saying: All who have died without a knowledge of this gospel, who would have received it if they had been permitted to tarry, shall be heirs of the celestial kingdom of God;   
8 Also all that shall die henceforth without a knowledge of it, who would have received it with all their hearts, shall be heirs of that kingdom;   
9 For I, the Lord, will judge all men according to their works, according to the desire of their hearts.   
10 And I also beheld that all children who die before they arrive at the years of accountability are saved in the celestial kingdom of heaven.   
   
Mother & Father was not dead during the time of the vision.   
   
Salvation is determined by the desires of men.   
Justice & mercy is truly balanced perfectly.   
   
1840   
Baptism for the dead was first revealed in a funeral that Joseph Smith spoke at.   
The saints were excited in the introduction, practicing it without order.   
D&C 124 formalizes Baptism for the dead.   
   
D&C 127:5-7; 128:8   
proper recording with ordinance performance by the one holding the priesthood authority   
D&C 128:6-7   
records are part of book used at judgment day   
D&C 128:15, 17-18   
   
   
M Russell Ballard   
Responsibility given to a child   
Two years later, Joseph F., along with his family and faithful mother, Mary Fielding Smith, left his home in Nauvoo for Winter Quarters. Although not yet eight years old, Joseph F. was required to drive one of the oxteams from Montrose, Iowa, to Winter Quarters and then later on to the Salt Lake Valley, arriving when he was almost 10. I hope you boys and young men are listening and will realize the responsibility and expectation placed on Joseph F. during his boyhood.   
   
He endured a lot of death in his life; losing his father, mother, & daughter.   
That year was particularly painful for him. He grieved over the death toll in the Great World War that continued to climb to over 20 million people killed. Additionally, a flu pandemic was spreading around the world, taking the lives of as many as 100 million people.   
   
& many other family members   
   
And so it was on October 3, 1918, having experienced intense sorrow over the millions who had died in the world through war and disease as well as the deaths of his own family members, President Smith received the heavenly revelation known as “the vision of the redemption of the dead.”   
   
Read section 138 of Doctrine and Covenants with this introduction.

Your Treasure is Where Your Heart is.

Today I started noting how to focus on Heavenly things, for your treasure is where your heart is. This was inspired by the 'Come, follow me' curriculum. Seek after Heavenly things because they will never perish. The following are my thoughts and notes:

Don't seek the pursuits of pride.

- glory of men

I almost considered writing about the many pursuits of pride, but the term "glory of men" from Jesus Christ sums it up simply. If one find seeking the "glory of men" in their desires, the individual should evaluate their ambitions.

Don't talk or make visual presentations about your works.

- Alms and miracles 

Don't talk about your spiritual work. Let it talk for itself. Don't talk about the miracles in your life casually or regularly. Keep all of these things sacred. Treasure them secretly in prayer, and God will openly reward the faithful saints.

27 February 2019

My goal today at work was to reissue an updated QC sequence manual. I was only able to update three sections, but two were very old requiring a lot of work. 

Portland weather has been interesting, snowing for the past three days, but the snow never sticks. The clouds usually burn away by the afternoon, and the snow melts. I have gotten comfortable cycling in snow. My heart was pumping extra fast on the first day of the snow season. My body released or produced adrenaline. (I don't know the process.) But this morning I was whistling like nothing was wrong. I had to be careful more than usual of course, but I was not afraid. I did see frozen puddles of water, and I did slip, yet I was in control. Cycling in powder snow is safe. I thought of Ghostbusters line. "I ain't afraid of no [snow.]" I also think cycling when it is thirty degrees outside is safe, if the snow did not stick from the previous day. It has been like this for the past three days. Cycling in powder snow is not an extreme sport.

Today I started noting how to focus on Heavenly things, for your treasure is where your heart is. Seek after Heavenly things because they will never perish. The following are my thoughts and notes:

Don't seek the pursuits of pride.

- glory of men

I almost considered writing about the many pursuits of pride, but the term "glory of men" from Jesus Christ sums it up simply. If one find seeking the "glory of men" in their desires, the individual should evaluate their ambitions.

Don't talk or make visual presentations about your works.

- Alms and miracles 

Don't talk about your spiritual work. Let it talk for itself. Don't talk about the miracles in your life casually or regularly. Keep all of these things sacred. Treasure them secretly in prayer, and God will openly reward the faithful saints.

In the evening Facebook give me 15 dollars to advertise my blog, so I started that free ad campaign. Why not? I also bought 21 Habitica gems with free money from Mobile Performance Meter. Contact me, if you want to join me on Habitica or Mobile Performance Meter.

Your Treasure is Where Your Heart is.

Today I started noting how to focus on Heavenly things, for your treasure is where your heart is. Seek after Heavenly things because they will never perish. The following are my thoughts and notes:

Don't seek the pursuits of pride.

- glory of men

I almost considered writing about the many pursuits of pride, but the term "glory of men" from Jesus Christ sums it up simply. If one find seeking the "glory of men" in their desires, the individual should evaluate their ambitions.

Don't talk or make visual presentations about your works.

- Alms and miracles 

don't talk about your spiritual work. Let it talk for itself. Don't talk about the miracles in your life casually or regularly. Keep all of these things sacred. Treasure them secretly in prayer, and God will openly reward the faithful saints openly.

The Standards of Taking Care of a Cat

The job was simple. I fed them a couple hours late, but everything went late today. Taking care of cats is simple. The standards of taking care of a cat by our instruction are the following:

- give 1/6 cup of food twice a day

- serve clean drinking water once a day

- a clean the litter box; guessing twice a day

- Jessica threw out the cat litter yesterday. She said to do that twice a week; I believe.

The opposite is actually true.

'The phrase “I never knew you” in Matthew 7:23 was changed in the Joseph Smith Translation to “Ye never knew me” (Matthew 7:23, footnote a).' (Come, follow me) [Questions are from the same section.]

How does this change help you better understand what the Lord taught in verses 21–22 about doing His will? 

A doctrinal change is given, for the King James Translation says that Jesus Christ only knows the people, who are faithful to the gospel; however, it is the opposite. Only people, who are faithful to the gospel, truly know Jesus Christ.

How well do you feel you know the Lord? 

I think that I know him well. I read Jesus the Christ by Elder Talmage and the New Testament to learn of his life.

What can you do to know Him better?

I can learn of him more by practicing his attributes; then, I can learn of his thought patterns.

26 February 2019

When I arrived to work, I was surprised to hear that management arranged for me to inspect the completion of RDH's site visit report items. Foreman has never arranged for me to go down the Hydro mobile lift to verify QC items until today. They did take me down to document the first-in-place stone sill installation though.

The crew that took me down the Hydro mobile from floor 15 to 5 was excited to work with me. Kyle & Damin Junior took down with Damin Senior. Damin Senior always says that he wants to set stone with me. I worked with the Damins In California.

People seem to be valuing my work more. Hoffman inquired about my QC reports for the last two days. They actually said that I am doing a good job.

I am happy that we are able to report that we completed the RDH SVR items before we received the report, and I reported their completion within a few hours after the RDH report was forwarded to me.

Trevor, my little brother, called me right at the end of my work as I finished my response to the RDH Report. We talked about tech, friends, and so forth.

I remembered to mail Jessica & I's Passport applications. My work at the project across the street got me instantly on terms with the passport guy at USPS. He set me up with my applications, making things simple.

I practiced taking care of cats today. Jessica usually does it, but she is working nearly twelve hours as a babysitter today.

The job was simple. I fed them a couple hours late, but everything went late today. Taking care of cats is simple. The standards of taking care of a cat by our instruction are the following:

- give 1/6 cup of food twice a day

- serve clean drinking water once a day

- a clean the litter box; guessing twice a day

- Jessica threw out the cat litter yesterday. She said to do that twice a week; I believe.

Today I wrote the following in my scripture study journal:

'The phrase “I never knew you” in Matthew 7:23 was changed in the Joseph Smith Translation to “Ye never knew me” (Matthew 7:23, footnote a).' (Come, follow me) [Questions are from the same section.]

How does this change help you better understand what the Lord taught in verses 21–22 about doing His will? 

A doctrinal change is given, for the King James Translation says that Jesus Christ only knows the people, who are faithful to the gospel; however, it is the opposite. Only people, who are faithful to the gospel, truly know Jesus Christ.

How well do you feel you know the Lord? 

I think that I know him well. I read Jesus the Christ by Elder Talmage and the New Testament to learn of his life.

What can you do to know Him better?

I can learn of him more by practicing his attributes; then, I can learn of his thought patterns.

Learning from the example of the Lord's Prayer

Family Home Evening included watching videos of the Sermon on the Mount and discussing it. I learned from the Lord's Prayer that his example shows that man should express humility to God, seeking his will. Jesus Christ has also expressed that gratitude is appreciated in the story of the Ten Lepers' healing. 

I was reminded of D&C 59:21 "And in nothing doth man offend God, or against none is his wrath kindled, save those who confess not his hand in all things, and obey not his commandments." I would like to bear unto you my witness that my life would be meaningless without Heavenly Father, and his plan of Happiness. My efforts have not brought me to my station in life, but I trust that God will provide for me. His grace has blessed my best effort, and I express gratitude in this wise often.

25 February 2019

Today Columbia Stone was digesting a big QC bust. QC like safety saves money over the long run especially on a project like the Multnomah County Central Court House, where our scope is way beyond our expertise. QC was never really a priority. This project has been very hard. 

I walked all the floors of the building today, and I was surprised that I nearly have thirty inspections for this week. Progress in welding was so slow that I may have doubted it the passed two weeks. I have not completed many recently.

Family Home Evening included watching videos of the Sermon on the Mount and discussing it. I learned from the Lord's Prayer that his example shows that man should express humility to God, seeking his will. Jesus Christ has also expressed that gratitude is appreciated in the story of the Ten Lepers' healing. 

I was reminded of D&C 59:21 "And in nothing doth man offend God, or against none is his wrath kindled, save those who confess not his hand in all things, and obey not his commandments." I would like to bear unto you my witness that my life would be meaningless without Heavenly Father, and his plan of Happiness. My efforts have not brought me to my station in life, but I trust that God will provide for me. His grace has blessed my best effort, and I express gratitude in this wise often.

Asking a retired sports columnist about writing side job opportunities.

I engaged in a couple new friendships in my temple service last Saturday; one, a service missionary, and the other, a retired sports columnist. I asked the columnist about writing side job opportunities. He said that newspaper companies don't have the staff to cover all of the events that they desire, and that correspondence writing is an opportunity. I may have used the wrong terminology. One would go to events, and write an article about it. My life is so busy that it would be hard to fit it in. I would have to network with newspaper companies to figure out this opportunity.

24 February 2019

Today I woke up later than my 5 AM routine. I did not get to do much before church. 

During Sacrament meeting a mother talked about her experience with the Holy Ghost. Many people feel the spirit emotionally. She is not one of them. I am the same way. I sympathize with her, feeling disfunctional. Her talk cited an apostle recently stating that it is okay to not feel the spirit regularly. Everyone has a different relationship with God the Father. I wrote that I understand the mind receives promptings from good and bad sources. Fundamentally we have one's spirit, the light of Christ, and the Holy Ghost. The bad side has the natural man and Satan. My good thoughts come from the light of Christ and the Holy Ghost. This is how I recognize the Holy Ghost in my life. 

There are different personality such as: abstract artistic thinkers, analytical thinkers, logic oriented people, and emotional empathetic people. The Holy Ghost works with the thought orientation of all man, and he does not work the same way with everyone.

Primary was unique. Two girls in my class had things to glue together. Lewis gave a couple origami crafts to Ember, and she wanted me to glue them together to make a jet plane. Ruby hoped that I could fix a necklace pendent, which she accidentally chipped. Asking Ruby if my gluing work is sufficient, I heard her reply that I hope that my mom does not notice; then, she said that she would tell her mom the truth anyways. I am grateful to be part of this learning experience in her life. Hiding the truth is harmful to human relationships, including ones' relationship with themselves.

After choir we headed straight to my parent-in-law's apartment because Jessica's father started working 5 pm to 5 am. I guessed that he might work for Nike because I had a schedule like that there. My guess was accurate, and I talked about my experience. John & I have a couple companies similar on our resumé. First it was Cutco, and Nike is now on the list.

It is okay if you don't feel the spirit emotionally regularly.

During Sacrament meeting a mother talked about her experience with the Holy Ghost. Many people feel the spirit emotionally. She is not one of them. I am the same way. I sympathize with her, feeling disfunctional. Her talk cited an apostle recently stating that it is okay to not feel the spirit regularly. Everyone has a different relationship with God the Father. I wrote that I understand the mind receives promptings from good and bad sources. Fundamentally we have one's spirit, the light of Christ, and the Holy Ghost. The bad side has the natural man and Satan. My good thoughts come from the light of Christ and the Holy Ghost. This is how I recognize the Holy Ghost in my life. There are different personality such as: abstract artistic thinkers, analytical thinkers, logic oriented people, and emotional empathetic people. The Holy Ghost works with the thought orientation of all man, and he does not work the same way with everyone.

23 February 2019

The Portland Temple opened after a three week maintenance closure. This weekend was my first one back working. My schedule, doing ordinance work, was full. 

I engaged in a couple new friendships; one, a service missionary, and the other, a retired sports columnist. I asked the columnist about writing side job opportunities. He said that newspaper companies don't have the staff to cover all of the events that they desire, and that correspondence writing is an opportunity. I may have used the wrong terminology. My life is so busy that it would be hard to fit in. I would have to network with newspaper companies to figure out this opportunity.

This weekend is slow because I made no plans. I caught up on dishes and laundry. 

Raising Stripling Warriors

This morning I finished reading the chapter of Alma 56, introducing the stripling warriors. I wrote that we need to treat the raising generation as stripling warriors because they have the faith to turn the tides of war. Completing the chapter, I learned how stripling warriors were treated as they grew up.

I believe that their valience comes from the faith in God implanted in them by the teaching of their parents. 

And now, in the city Antiparah were stationed the strongest army of the Lamanites; yea, the most numerous...And it came to pass that we did flee before them, northward. And thus we did lead away the most powerful army of the Lamanites;... And now Antipus, beholding our danger, did speed the march of his army. But behold, it was night; therefore they did not overtake us, neither did Antipus overtake them; therefore we did camp for the night... And it came to pass that again, when the light of the morning came we saw the Lamanites upon us, and we did flee before them. But it came to pass that they did not pursue us far before they halted; and it was in the morning of the third day of the seventh month. 
And now, whether they were overtaken by Antipus we knew not, but I said unto my men: Behold, we know not but they have halted for the purpose that we should come against them, that they might catch us in their snare; Therefore what say ye, my sons, will ye go against them to battle? And now I say unto you, my beloved brother Moroni, that never had I seen so great courage, nay, not amongst all the Nephites. 
For as I had ever called them my sons (for they were all of them very young) even so they said unto me: Father, behold our God is with us, and he will not suffer that we should fall; then let us go forth; we would not slay our brethren if they would let us alone; therefore let us go, lest they should overpower the army of Antipus. Now they never had fought, yet they did not fear death; and they did think more upon the liberty of their fathers than they did upon their lives; yea, they had been taught by their mothers, that if they did not doubt, God would deliver them. And they rehearsed unto me the words of their mothers, saying: We do not doubt our mothers knew it... 
But behold, to my great joy, there had not one soul of them fallen to the earth; yea, and they had fought as if with the strength of God; yea, never were men known to have fought with such miraculous strength; and with such mighty power did they fall upon the Lamanites, that they did frighten them; and for this cause did the Lamanites deliver themselves up as prisoners of war. (Alma 56:34, 36, 38, 41-48, & 56)

The sons of the Anti-Nephi-Lehi people believed that God would divinely protect them; insomuch-that, none of them would die. There were only two thousand of them, and they did not fear the largest and strongest army of the Lamanites; although, none were trained in combat. How could this be true?

The key is faith in Jesus Christ, and the youth obtained it through the teaching of their parents. 

Faith is based on the word of God and revelation. The stripling warriors did not just make up the belief that God would protect them. I believe that the Anti-Nephi-Lehi people fasted and prayed for the preservation of their children's lives, and God granted according to their desires by revelation.

This type of faith is a higher level of faith than the regular standards of belief. The temple recommend interview has many questions similar to the baptismal interview. These questions are the standards of faith in the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Each question requires revelations; however, God designed that when an individual learns the truth fulness of the Book of Mormon that all of the questions are affirmed. If God told an individual something, the individual should act based on that knowledge. This is faith. Faith is not a blind belief because people receive revelation and knowledge of God. Faith is also known as an assurance.

One must trust the assurances that an individual is given. Faith weavers in doubt.

The stripling warriors trusted God's word that he would protect them. They would have died, if they doubted. We need to trust in our revelations today, for doubt will destroy faith, knowledge, and revelation, if we don't continually remember them. The stripling warriors would not have this higher level of faith, if they were not raised by stalwart parents in the gospel, teaching of faith in Christ. 

22 February 2019

My project manager suggested that my RFI to eClad was resolved in the recently revised and approved shop drawings. Looking through the drawings, I found nothing wrong with the elevation that my RFI was concerned with. I found that their instruction to cut the mullions were wrong. I have been asking for an answer, expecting them to research. They were not going to answer me without sound logic. Waiting for almost two months now, I don't know if they will. eClad just forwarded my email.
After work I gave into viewing Youtube and Facebook because I needed to charge my bike lights. My "new" laptop only has two USB ports, and I forgot to charge them during lunch. The distracted evening is not good.
Jessica and I did pay taxes this evening.
I was studying the law of Moses, relating it to the higher law given in the sermon on the mount, but Christ spoke so simply that I didn't think writing notes were necessary.
The following notes are from Sacrament meeting last Sunday, for I heard Ben a former student of mine ask her mother...:

What is the sacrament?   
I imagined teaching my child during the sacrament, saying the following.
Look. The bread represents the flesh of Jesus Christ. It is broken. The flesh of God is broken because all men will die, but Jesus has power over death. When he died, he resurrected, returning to the presence of Heavenly Father.   
Look. The water represents the blood of Jesus Christ, which was shed, when he was doing the atonement. The atonement of Christ allows God to forgive, heal, and comfort man.    
Partaking of the bread and water is an ordinance that renews my promises with God.

What is the sacrament?

I was studying the law of Moses, relating it to the higher law given in the sermon on the mount, but Christ spoke so simply that I didn't think writing notes were necessary.

The following notes are from Sacrament meeting last Sunday, for I heard Ben a former student of mine ask her mother...:

What is the sacrament?   

I imagined teaching my child during the sacrament, saying the following.

Look. The bread represents the flesh of Jesus Christ. It is broken. The flesh of God is broken because all men will die, but Jesus has power over death. When he died, he resurrected, returning to the presence of Heavenly Father.   

Look. The water represents the blood of Jesus Christ, which was shed, when he was doing the atonement. The atonement of Christ allows God to forgiven, heal, and comfort man.    

Partaking of the bread and water is an ordinance that renews my promises with God.

21 February 2019

Reading the Book of Mormon this morning, I was impressed by the description of the stripling warriors. Helaman called them "little sons." (Alma 56:30) I imagine the Aaronic Priesthood age youth. Art typically depicts them as strong and "large in stature." 

The Kingdom of God's youth are mighty enough to turn the tides of war. The youth are the hope of the future, and all of them truly can have the faith to come home alive from the war as all of the sons of Helamen did. Let us believe that our youth have the faith of Christ to withstand Satan's attacks, and treat them as  such.

Thursdays are big days. We did grocery shopping before Institute this and last week, arriving late to the class.

My laptop was acting odd this morning, wasting a couple hours of the day.

I revealed the extend of the buried inspections today to the inspector, discussing a plan to complete them.

Institute discussed the Kingdoms of Glory. 

The Little Sons of Helamen

Reading the Book of Mormon this morning, I was impressed by the description of the stripling warriors. Helaman called them "little sons." (Alma 56:30) I imagine the Aaronic Priesthood age youth. Art typically depicts them as strong and "large in stature." 

The Kingdom of God's youth are mighty enough to turn the tides of war. The youth are the hope of the future, and all of them truly can have the faith to come home alive from the war as all of the sons of Helamen did. Let us believe that our youth have the faith of Christ to withstand Satan's attacks, and treat them as  such.

Easing the wear on a Hamilton Beach bread machine

Baking 2 pound loaves of wheat bread, I finally discovered a way after years of using a bread machine to ease the wear of its operation. It typically skips gears, making loud noices, because the dough is thick and rough on the kneading appendage. I learned to put the last half cup of wheat flour after its mixing the first four cups of wheat flour with ease about five minutes into its routine.

What is the covenant of salt?

I am working on a scripture study activity over a couple days, but I have a simple precept to write about.

I learned about the covenant of salt, which I never was taught about before. It is very symbolic, yet is very real too. It is mentioned in the following verse:

"All the heave offerings of the holy things, which the children of Israel offer unto the Lord, have I given thee, and thy sons and thy daughters with thee, by a statute for ever: it is a covenant of salt for ever before the Lord unto thee and to thy seed with thee." (Numbers 18:19)

In the Old Testament we hear of prophets, numbering the minimum amount of saints required to preserve a nation from destruction. This is a tangible fruit of the covenant of salt. Abraham is known for negotiating with God about how many people were required to save Sodom and Gomorrah in Genesis 18.

"Salt has long been used to preserve, flavor, and purify... When salt loses its savor, it becomes ineffective, or “good for nothing” (Matthew 5:13). This happens when it is mixed with or contaminated by other elements. As disciples of Christ, we keep our “savor” by avoiding spiritual contamination from the world. This allows us to fulfill our preserving and purifying work as the salt of the earth—for example, through sharing the gospel and being an influence for good in the world (see D&C 103:9–10)." (Come, follow me)

The benefits of salt are a reflection of God's promises to preserving and purifying his covenant people. Salt pulling out flavor could represent the joy of the gospel. We truly have to work at the gospel to pull the joys of life to our taste. The gospel is not easy, but it is easier on man than life in the corrupt world.

20 February 2019

Jessica and I went to the Dairy Hill and Pizzicato for our monthly ice cream date. 

We tried their milkshakes at Dairy Hill. They are heavily ice cream based. The flavor was sweet, and the texture was mediocre. 

We tried the Daiya Vegan cheese on a very veggie pizza at Pizzicato. The flavors were all very mild, making it almost refreshing. The Daiya "cheese" kind of tasted like melted rice noodle, but it was barely observable, since it was so mild.

I finally discovered a way after years of using a bread machine to ease the wear of its operation. It typically skips gears, making loud noices, because the dough is thick and rough on the kneading appendage. I learned to put the last half cup of wheat flour after about five minutes of its routine, mixing the first four cups of wheat flour with ease.

At work, I got back into my productive mode today. The past two days were bad. It has become known that many inspections are buried, but people are working on it with me, without taking the brunt of the blame. I try my best, and quality control was not a priority in the beginning. I am still learning to step into my role a quality control project engineer.

I was productive by creating the quality control plan to catch up on buried inspections with my project manager. I also created some more Field Deficiency Reports from last week's QC walk.

In the mail, I received notice from the IRS that I do owe them money. It is a good thing that I did not pay TurboTax out of the negative balance.

I am working on a scripture study activity over a couple days, but I have a simple precept to write about.

I learned about the covenant of salt, which I never was taught about before. It is very symbolic, yet is very real too. It is mentioned in the following verse:

"All the heave offerings of the holy things, which the children of Israel offer unto the Lord, have I given thee, and thy sons and thy daughters with thee, by a statute for ever: it is a covenant of salt for ever before the Lord unto thee and to thy seed with thee." (Numbers 18:19)

In the Old Testament we hear of prophets, numbering the minimum amount of saints required to preserve a nation from destruction. This is a tangible fruit of the covenant of salt. Abraham is known for negotiating with God about how many people were required to save Sodom and Gomorrah in Genesis 18.

"Salt has long been used to preserve, flavor, and purify... When salt loses its savor, it becomes ineffective, or “good for nothing” (Matthew 5:13). This happens when it is mixed with or contaminated by other elements. As disciples of Christ, we keep our “savor” by avoiding spiritual contamination from the world. This allows us to fulfill our preserving and purifying work as the salt of the earth—for example, through sharing the gospel and being an influence for good in the world (see D&C 103:9–10)." (Come, follow me)

The benefits of salt are a reflection of God's promises to preserving and purifying his covenant people. Salt pulling out flavor could represent the joy of the gospel. We truly have to work at the gospel to pull the joys of life to our taste. The gospel is not easy, but it is easier on man than life in the corrupt world.

19 February 2019

Inspections have become very difficult to coordinate especially when we install things in a sequence that welds are completed after other components are installed. It is not ideal. 

We had our first consultation with the city inspector, and he expressed that he would like to meet weekly. Our meeting was chill. I was scared to do it myself, but I will probably meet with them alone in the future.

Jessica and I went out for pizza and milkshakes for our monthly anniversary. My father-in-law actually congratulated us. 

I wrote the following pondering the verses of scripture below:

"Yea, and they were depressed in body as well as in spirit, for they had fought valiantly by day and toiled by night to maintain their cities; and thus they had suffered great afflictions of every kind. And now they were determined to conquer in this place or die; therefore you may well suppose that this little force which I brought with me, yea, those sons of mine, gave them great hopes and much joy." (Alma 56:16-17)

Depressed people contend against an enemy day and night, facing a hopeless situation. They fear for their lives. This is a physical situation for the Nephite in these verses, but a spiritual war is depressing people daily.

One interesting thing, which is revealed in these verses, is that people can be depressed and be valiant in the fight for our lives.

Another great thing is that faith in Christ fulfills all that one can hope for. The sons of the Anti-Nephi-Lehi people were a great example of faith in Jesus Christ. They trusted in their lives so much to the Lord that all of them returned home from the war. We can share the burden of the depressed, relieving them of their fear; only if it is temperary, they will be comforted, feeling your love. The Nephites found much joy and hope in the stripling warriors. We can be stripling warriors in the spiritual war of today.

One can be depressed and valiant at the same time.

"Yea, and they were depressed in body as well as in spirit, for they had fought valiantly by day and toiled by night to maintain their cities; and thus they had suffered great afflictions of every kind. And now they were determined to conquer in this place or die; therefore you may well suppose that this little force which I brought with me, yea, those sons of mine, gave them great hopes and much joy." (Alma 56:16-17)

Depressed people contend against an enemy day and night, facing a hopeless situation. They fear for their lives. This is a physical situation for the Nephite in these verses, but a spiritual war is depressing people daily.

One interesting thing, which is revealed in these verses, is that people can be depressed and be valiant in the fight for our lives.

Another great thing is that faith in Christ fulfills all that one can hope for. The sons of the Anti-Nephi-Lehi people were a great example of faith in Jesus Christ. They trusted in their lives so much to the Lord that all of them returned home from the war. We can share the burden of the depressed, relieving them of their fear. Although it is temperary, they will be comforted, feeling your love. The Nephites found much joy and hope in the stripling warriors. We can be stripling warriors in the spiritual war of today.

18 February 2019

วันนี้อากาศหมอกเเละหนาว I learned from my mother not to use Google translate, but Thai to English dictionaries are more accurate.  

One of Columbia Stone's goals for the week is to complete installing and inspecting the Probels. I scheduled a couple last week for Tuesday, giving today to prepare for them. I went up to check if I could schedule more inspections for tomorrow. Looking at the welds, I decided that I need the welder's input before I write deficiency reports. I think that I have come to a point in the decline of quality welds that I cannot schedule inspections without a report from the company that they are prepared for the inspection. An elevation cannot be assumed complete, when the connection plates are welded. The freezing weather made this decision more decisive.

A second thing that made my day slow is that my operation manager is having me switch to another laptop, and IT had to work on it for most of the day. At the end of work I was downloading programs that I prefer to use like OneDrive and Vivaldi browser. I am a little tired of companies trying to squeeze as much money out of me, so I am going off grid Google wise. I did so on my work computer and phone. I can't do it on my tablet because it is a Nexus 9. I also will not have Facebook on my phone or work computer. Microsoft is another company, trying to squeeze as much money out of me with all their subscriptions and data from free services. I will only access gmail and Facebook occasionally on my home computer.

I wrote the following pondering the sermon on the mount:

Find joy in the eternal perspective. Life in the world is not true happiness. Happiness comes from living, pondering, and talking about the gospel of Jesus Christ. The world may find pleasure in vain things, gratifying pride, and carnal endulgence; however, the saints of God embrace temperance, modesty, and charity. These are sources of joy, self-esteem, and peace. Don't worry about what other people say about you especially if it is false or they persecute you for your faith in Christ.

Happiness in the World v. The Kingdom of God

"Everybody wants to be happy, but not everyone looks for happiness in the same places. Some search for it in worldly power and position, others in wealth or in satisfying physical appetites. Jesus Christ came to teach the way to lasting happiness, to teach what it truly means to be blessed. What do you learn about obtaining lasting happiness from Matthew 5:1–12 and Luke 6:20–26? How is this different from the world’s view of happiness?" (Come, follow me)

Find joy in the eternal perspective. Life in the world is not true happiness. Happiness comes from living, pondering, and talking about the gospel of Jesus Christ. The world may find pleasure in vain things, gratifying pride, and carnal endulgence; however, the saints of God embrace temperance, modesty, and charity. These are sources of joy, self-esteem, and peace. Don't worry about what other people say about you especially if it is false or they persecute you for your faith in Christ.

The references are quoted below.

"And seeing the multitudes, he went up into a mountain: and when he was set, his disciples came unto him: And he opened his mouth, and taught them, saying, Blessed are the poor in spirit: for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. Blessed are they that mourn: for they shall be comforted. Blessed are the meek: for they shall inherit the earth. Blessed are they which do hunger and thirst after righteousness: for they shall be filled. Blessed are the merciful: for they shall obtain mercy. Blessed are the pure in heart: for they shall see God. Blessed are the peacemakers: for they shall be called the children of God. Blessed are they which are persecuted for righteousness’ sake: for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. Blessed are ye, when men shall revile you, and persecute you, and shall say all manner of evil against you falsely, for my sake. Rejoice, and be exceeding glad: for great is your reward in heaven: for so persecuted they the prophets which were before you." (Matthew 5:1-12)

"And he lifted up his eyes on his disciples, and said, Blessed be ye poor: for yours is the kingdom of God. Blessed are ye that hunger now: for ye shall be filled. Blessed are ye that weep now: for ye shall laugh. Blessed are ye, when men shall hate you, and when they shall separate you from their company, and shall reproach you, and cast out your name as evil, for the Son of man’s sake. Rejoice ye in that day, and leap for joy: for, behold, your reward is great in heaven: for in the like manner did their fathers unto the prophets. But woe unto you that are rich! for ye have received your consolation. Woe unto you that are full! for ye shall hunger. Woe unto you that laugh now! for ye shall mourn and weep. Woe unto you, when all men shall speak well of you! for so did their fathers to the false prophets." (Luke 6:20-26)

17 February 2019

Waking up at 5 AM per my regular schedule this Sabbath day, I started the first of a couple loads of laundry while I retrieved a 25 pound bag of oats from the car, which we purchased Thursday night. I scheduled the content of the "Single Adults' blogs of Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints."

I studied/pondered the scriptures, writing an article for 'Once Upon a Percept' early today, writing the following:

"As you read about the Savior changing water into wine in John 2:1–11, what insights do you gain about the power of Christ to change you?" (Come, follow me)

When I first read this, I thought that it did not apply to life much, ignoring it until Jessica brought it up last night.

"And [the third day of the week] (JST John 2:1) there was a marriage in Cana of Galilee; and the mother of Jesus was there: And both Jesus was called, and his disciples, to the marriage. And when they wanted wine, the mother of Jesus saith unto him, They have no wine. 
Jesus saith unto her, [Woman, what wilt thou have me to do for thee? that will I do; for mine hour is not yet come.] (JST John 2:4)
His mother saith unto the servants, Whatsoever he saith unto you, do it.
And there were set there six waterpots of stone, after the manner of the purifying of the Jews, containing two or three firkins apiece. Jesus saith unto them, Fill the waterpots with water. And they filled them up to the brim. And he saith unto them, Draw out now, and bear unto the governor of the feast. And they bare it. 
When the ruler of the feast had tasted the water that was made wine, and knew not whence it was: (but the servants which drew the water knew;) the governor of the feast called the bridegroom, And saith unto him, Every man at the beginning doth set forth good wine; and when men have well drunk, then that which is worse: but thou hast kept the good wine until now. 
This beginning of miracles did Jesus in Cana of Galilee, and manifested forth his glory; and his disciples believed on him." (John 2:1-11)

The water changed to wine as the wind and waves did. The weather and water were obedient to the will of the Lord. 

"And there arose a great storm of wind, and the waves beat into the ship, so that it was now full. And he was in the hinder part of the ship, asleep on a pillow: and they awake him, and say unto him, Master, carest thou not that we perish? And he arose, and rebuked the wind, and said unto the sea, Peace, be still. And the wind ceased, and there was a great calm. And he said unto them, Why are ye so fearful? how is it that ye have no faith? And they feared exceedingly, and said one to another, What manner of man is this, that even the wind and the sea obey him?" (Mark 4:37 -41)
Why would Satan tempt Christ to command stones to become bread, if it were not possible?
"And the devil said unto him, If thou be the Son of God, command this stone that it be made bread.
And Jesus answered him, saying, It is written, That man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word of God." (Luke 4:3-4)

The options to choose are much more for man than water and stone, yet water and stone can change by the power of God. These Earthly elements have faith in God for they knew him before the creation of the Earth.

"And the Gods ordered, saying: Let the waters under the heaven be gathered together unto one place, and let the earth come up dry; and it was so as they ordered; And the Gods pronounced the dry land, Earth; and the gathering together of the waters, pronounced they, Great Waters; and the Gods saw that they were obeyed." (Abraham 4:9-10)

The water would not have changed to wine, if the servants did not have faith in Jesus; just as, the disciples could not cast out the devil in the lunatic child. Although the devils knew that they had the authority to cast out devils, the devils did not obey them. Their faith in Christ was limited at that time. Faith precedes miracles.

"Lord, have mercy on my son: for he is lunatic, and sore vexed: for ofttimes he falleth into the fire, and oft into the water. And I brought him to thy disciples, and they could not cure him.

Then Jesus answered and said, O faithless and perverse generation, how long shall I be with you? how long shall I suffer you? bring him hither to me. And Jesus rebuked the devil; and he departed out of him: and the child was cured from that very hour.

Then came the disciples to Jesus apart, and said, Why could not we cast him out?
And Jesus said unto them, Because of your unbelief: for verily I say unto you, If ye have faith as a grain of mustard seed, ye shall say unto this mountain, Remove hence to yonder place; and it shall remove; and nothing shall be impossible unto you." (Matthew 17:15-20)

Faith without works is dead. Man have greater agency than stone and water, but some people feel that they cannot change. My life is a witness that man can change by faith in Jesus Christ and obedience. 
As a teenager, Satan trapped me in sin that I was stuck in for a third of my life; at that time in my life. Only by obedience to the principle of fasting did my faith in Christ access his power to change. God delivered me from Satan's grasp. My life would be damned and miserable without the gospel of Jesus Christ.

I also worked on my first journal entry in Thai. My mom yesterday said that I only made a couple errors; then, she said the words are translated too literally, and the grammar is off today. I corrected the two errors. I gave my mom the document to mark up, hoping she can teach me of my mistakes more directly.

I seemed to be too confident in my lesson plan for CTR 5. I had two parts to the lesson. The first went well, reviewing John 3:16. I then had them write on a paper what their parents do for them because they love them. They got in the spirit of Valentine's Day, wanting to make books for their family. The second did not go well. 

I reviewed Mary's request of Jesus Christ to provide wine. I was going to discuss how they can help their parents. There was not much to that conversation. We ended ten minutes early, but a most were interested in coloring. I prepared the first part well, but the second fell apart.

After church Jessica & I went to choir, and Brother Kuhn joined us. He was inspired by the quality of our singing, saying the that we sounded like the Tabernacle Choir at Temple Square.

When I got home, I tried to write this journal entry, but I was dozing off.

Jessica woke me up at 4:50 pm, and I saw my phone, saying that dinner starts at 5 pm sharp from my father-in-law. We are at their residence now.

If water can change to wine by the power of God, you can change too.

"As you read about the Savior changing water into wine in John 2:1–11, what insights do you gain about the power of Christ to change you?" (Come, follow me)

When I first read this, I thought that it did not apply to life much, ignoring it until Jessica brought it up last night.

"And [the third day of the week] (JST John 2:1) there was a marriage in Cana of Galilee; and the mother of Jesus was there: And both Jesus was called, and his disciples, to the marriage. And when they wanted wine, the mother of Jesus saith unto him, They have no wine. 

Jesus saith unto her, [Woman, what wilt thou have me to do for thee? that will I do; for mine hour is not yet come.] (JST John 2:4)

His mother saith unto the servants, Whatsoever he saith unto you, do it.

And there were set there six waterpots of stone, after the manner of the purifying of the Jews, containing two or three firkins apiece. Jesus saith unto them, Fill the waterpots with water. And they filled them up to the brim. And he saith unto them, Draw out now, and bear unto the governor of the feast. And they bare it. 

When the ruler of the feast had tasted the water that was made wine, and knew not whence it was: (but the servants which drew the water knew;) the governor of the feast called the bridegroom, And saith unto him, Every man at the beginning doth set forth good wine; and when men have well drunk, then that which is worse: but thou hast kept the good wine until now. 

This beginning of miracles did Jesus in Cana of Galilee, and manifested forth his glory; and his disciples believed on him." (John 2:1-11)

The water changed to wine as the wind and waves did. The weather and water were obedient to the will of the Lord. 

"And there arose a great storm of wind, and the waves beat into the ship, so that it was now full. And he was in the hinder part of the ship, asleep on a pillow: and they awake him, and say unto him, Master, carest thou not that we perish? And he arose, and rebuked the wind, and said unto the sea, Peace, be still. And the wind ceased, and there was a great calm. And he said unto them, Why are ye so fearful? how is it that ye have no faith? And they feared exceedingly, and said one to another, What manner of man is this, that even the wind and the sea obey him?" (Mark 4:37 -41)

Why would Satan tempt Christ to command stones to become bread, if it were not possible?

"And the devil said unto him, If thou be the Son of God, command this stone that it be made bread.

And Jesus answered him, saying, It is written, That man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word of God." (Luke 4:3-4)

The options to choose are much more for man than water and stone, yet water and stone can change by the power of God. These Earthly elements have faith in God for they knew him before the creation of the Earth.

"And the Gods ordered, saying: Let the waters under the heaven be gathered together unto one place, and let the earth come up dry; and it was so as they ordered; And the Gods pronounced the dry land, Earth; and the gathering together of the waters, pronounced they, Great Waters; and the Gods saw that they were obeyed." (Abraham 4:9-10)

The water would not have changed to wine, if the servants did not have faith in Jesus; just as, the disciples could not cast out the devil in the lunatic child. Although the devils knew that they had the authority to cast out devils, the devils did not obey them. Their faith in Christ was limited at that time. Faith precedes miracles.

"Lord, have mercy on my son: for he is lunatic, and sore vexed: for ofttimes he falleth into the fire, and oft into the water. And I brought him to thy disciples, and they could not cure him.

Then Jesus answered and said, O faithless and perverse generation, how long shall I be with you? how long shall I suffer you? bring him hither to me. And Jesus rebuked the devil; and he departed out of him: and the child was cured from that very hour.

Then came the disciples to Jesus apart, and said, Why could not we cast him out?

And Jesus said unto them, Because of your unbelief: for verily I say unto you, If ye have faith as a grain of mustard seed, ye shall say unto this mountain, Remove hence to yonder place; and it shall remove; and nothing shall be impossible unto you." (Matthew 17:15-20)

Faith without works is dead. Man have greater agency than stone and water, but some people feel that they cannot change. My life is a witness that man can change by faith in Jesus Christ and obedience. 

As a teenager, Satan trapped me in sin that I was stuck in for a third of my life; at that time in my life. Only by obedience to the principle of fasting did my faith in Christ access his power to change. God delivered me from Satan's grasp. My life would be damned and miserable without the gospel of Jesus Christ.

A reflection on the RFI process

Conversing with engineers/a company to resolve a request for information is interesting. All stakeholders come with very different perspectives. If our operation and mindset are similar, we would be competitors rather than a client or customer. We would not hire them, if we did not need their product. The company would not have a product, if it did not resolve a designer’s need; therefore, none of the entities have similar operations because they would not be needed otherwise. If they do, they would be competitors and not work with each other. Don't expect people who operate differently to understand and agree. They will approach things differently, and each entity's service is needed to complete the project/product. The incorporation of each entity's contribution is the key to resolving issues according to my experience today. We need people to provide different services and products, or we would all be competitors, not working together. The unity of many entities results in a product/project that one entity or many like-minded individuals who compete cannot create. The combination of entities to resolve an issue will achieve a bigger picture success. The owner/customer typically needs and provides the means for bigger picture success. They may not know what they need/want, but the bigger picture success will be needed. The collaboration of many unique entities can achieve the things, where no individual understands all parts. This collaboration requires skill and critical thinking. It requires human inaction and an exchange of thoughts.

Being born again, comes by the Spirit of God through ordinances.

"The Prophet Joseph Smith taught, “Being born again, comes by the Spirit of God through ordinances” (Teachings of Presidents of the Church: Joseph Smith [2007], 95). 

What role did your baptism (being “born of water” [John 3:5]) and confirmation (being born “of the Spirit” [John 3:5]) play in being born again?" (Come, follow me)

Baptism represents death and a new life, when an individual is emerged in the water. Their sins are forgiven as they enter into the covenant. The Gift of the Holy Ghost endowed upon man at Confirmation allows an individual to have the spirit as a constant companion.

This is my understanding of the mind. Our minds are drawn to weaknesses and strengths, and people's minds get thoughts from two sources.

"Man could not act for himself save it should be that he was enticed by the one or the other." "For it must needs be, that there is an opposition in all things. If not so, my firstborn in the wilderness, righteousness could not be brought to pass, neither wickedness, neither holiness nor misery, neither good nor bad." (2 Nephi 2:16 & 11)

When man takes upon themselves the covenant of baptism, man have more consistent promptings of the Holy Ghost. They become more Godly. Confirmation, the ordinance, granting the Gift of the Holy Ghost, is key to being born again because God will guide his covenant people to a life where man can recognize in them that they have taken upon themselves the name of Christ, becoming a new person.

16 February 2019

The past two nights writing has kept me up late. I woke up this morning at 5 AM, having only 5 hours of sleep. I scheduled blog posts for the "Blogs of Single Adults of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints" social media pages because it is hard to fit it in my day when I sleep in. My body and mind was wide awake, since I wake up at five every day; therefore, I chose to plan my CTR 5 lesson until I fell asleep. After preparing my lesson I woke up nearly 9:40. 

A couple days ago I wrote that I should continue to read the Book of Mormon daily, and I have. Writing a journal keeps me accountable.

My goal for the day was to start practicing writing weekly in Thai, a simple Thai journal. I have my learning material on my phone and I made sure that I would write the words physically rather than copy and paste. Grammar is simple. I had my mom review it. She said that my sentences were understandable, but my last sentence was too vague/casual, and one word did not translate well. I wrote this for my Thai relatives.

อาทิตย์อากาศฝน ผมขี่จักรติดขัดเเลยมาถึงที่งานเเลยบ้านเปียก

งานอาทิตย์เเล้วที่เกี่ยวข้องการตรวจสอบเเลยเอกสารปรับปรุง ผมนําสมัยโพยการควบคุมคุณภาพเเลยเอกสารการก่อสร้างเการตการตรวจสอบ

เวลาพ้นรวดเร็ว สองวันที่เเล้วทําให้ผมสายเขานอน

This week was rainy. I would ride my bike, arriving at work and home wet.

Work involved inspections and updating documents. I updated my QC logs and the exterior turnover verification form.

Time goes by quick. Writing has kept me up late the past two days.

เส้นทางแปลภาษาไทยของผม | ๑๖ กมภาพันธ์ ๒๕๖๔

อาทิตย์อากาศฝน ผมขี่จักรติดขัดเเลยมาถึงที่งานเเลยบ้านเปียก
งานอาทิตย์เเล้วที่เกี่ยวข้องการตรวจสอบเเลยเอกสารล่าสุด ผมนําสมัยโพยการควบคุมคุณภาพเเลยเอกสารการก่อสร้างเการตการตรวจสอบ
เวลาพ้นรวดเร็ว สองวันที่เเล้วทําให้ผมสายเขานอน

The following is the "literal" translation of my journal entry, trying to apply what I understand of Thai Grammar:

Week previous weather rain. I ride a bike and arrive at work and home wet.

My work involve inspections and document updating. I update document construction completion and list quality control.

Time passes quick. Two day previous writing kept me up late from going to sleep.

The following is my English translation:

This week was rainy. I would my bike, arriving at work and home wet.
Work involved inspections and updating documents. I updated my QC logs and the exterior turnover verification form.
Time goes by quick. Writing has kept me up late the past two days.

The following is the my mother's translation of my English translate of my journal entry:

อาทิตย์​นี้​ฝนตก​ ผมขี่จักรยาน​ไปทำงาน​และ​ขี่​จักรยาน​กลับ​บ้าน​ งานของผม​ ผม​มี​หน้า​ที่​ตรวจและ​รับ​ข้อมูล​ใหม่​ๆ​ ผม​รับข้อมูล​ใหม่​ สำหรับ​ตระรางการควบคุม​คุณภาพ​และ​การชี้แจง​ความไม่ประสบ​ความ​สำเร็จของ.

เวลาผ่าน​ไป​เร็ว​มาก​ สองคืนที่ผ่านมา​ ผมอยู่​ดืกเพื่อ​เขียน

Words that I learned in my first journal entry in Thai

เส้นทางแปลภาษาไทยของฉัน = My Thai Translation Journey

กุมภาพันธ์ = February

กุมภาพันธ์=February 

อาทิตย์ = Week

มาถึงที่= arrive at

งาน=work

เปียก=wet

ที่เกี่ยวข้อง= involved

เกี่ยวข้อง=concerned

แล้ว=last, already, previous

การตรวจสอบ=inspections

เอกสาร=document

ปรับปรุง=update adverb

นำสมัย= update verb

โพย=list record

การควบคุมคุณภาพ=quality control

การก่อสร้าง= construction

การตรวจสอบ = verification, check, exam

เวลา=Time

พ้น= elapse, pass

รวดเร็ว= quick

สองวันที่=two days

การเขียน=writing

เขียน=write

เขานอน=going to sleep

"there is no end to my works, neither to my words." (Moses 1:38)

One may ask. Why do members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints have more scripture? Is not the Bible the complete word of God? 

There is no end to the word of God. The word of God is revealed through his prophets, and this is his eternal pattern. All prophets recorded their revelations as scripture, and there are a lot more records than the contents of the Bible. 

It seems that a qualification for a religion for the world's societies is that it has to remain in apostasy. I assert that the apostasy has closed on the Church of Jesus Christ with the opening the great and last dispensation. Apostasy comes when the people reject the prophets, and they have to be withdrawn until God sees fit to call a new prophet. Many of these prophets are martyred. "This generation shall have my word through you (Joseph)." (D&C 5:10) 

Joseph Smith Jr. recieved many gifts and revelations, including the priesthood and the keys of the kingdom. 

The focus of the Doctrine & Covenants is our relationship with God. Many sections of the Doctrine and Covenants is in response to reading scriptures. A passage in the introduction of the Doctrine & Covenants is the following:

"In the revelations, the doctrines of the gospel are set forth with explanations about such fundamental matters as the nature of the Godhead, the origin of man, the reality of Satan, the purpose of mortality, the necessity for obedience, the need for repentance, the workings of the Holy Spirit, the ordinances and performances that pertain to salvation, the destiny of the earth, the future conditions of man after the Resurrection and the Judgment, the eternity of the marriage relationship, and the eternal nature of the family."

 There is a Joseph Smith Translation Bible side by side. Over 3000 verses were revised by the inspiration of God in the book.    

The great and last dispensation will not end in apostasy. We live in the latter-days, and the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is led by Jesus Christ through a living prophet, who has all the priesthood keys to run the church and kingdom of God. 

"We believe all that God has revealed, all that He does now reveal, and we believe that He will yet reveal many great and important things pertaining to the Kingdom of God." (The ninth Article of Faith)

15 February 2018

When Jessica and I arrived home from institute, Jessica let me start a yearly subscription to Drops, the language app. Drops is good to keep me consistent. I have a vocabulary of about three hundred words, but I can't review them. Drops just keeps on teaching me new words without letting me review the entire list. I am thinking of writing a simple journal in Thai with words. Drops had a 40% off Valentine's Day sale, and fifteen of the forty dollar subscription were from my passive income apps; S'more and Mobile Performance Meter. I plan to pay for the subscription next year with the money raised from those apps.

Jessica also put on the animated film 'The Pebble and the Penguin.' I really liked the film. It was good for Valentine's Day. I sent it to Trevor my little brother. He loves penguins.

This morning I was paralyzed by a possible scheduling meeting with Fusion that my project manager invited me to. I wanted to contribute, making it effective, since they haven't been in the past. Complete Fusion Welding's CEO came late, and the meeting was derailed. 

My project manager told me to prepare a new revision to the QC sequence manual about a week ago. I file my documentation by week, and I looked back through the files for material and content that I may have missed in my QC manual previously. I told my operation manager about my effort, and he did not understand the importance, warning me to not publish material concerning change orders that we have not been granted.

After lunch I went for a QC walk, I found that I need to make field deficiency reports to enforce quality control alerts, warnings of possible deficient situations.

On Monday, I asked Alex Meldrum if he and his wife would like to join us at Sweet Tomato for dinner tonight. The food and evening was delightful. I laughed a lot. We went to Salt & Straw after because Alex felt like it. I tried the roasted strawberry and coconut flavor. The strawberry and coconut had a wonderful balance. The flavor was not to sweet, and the ingredients, being roasted added a unique flavor. An interesting thing is that it was vegetarian, and I did not taste a lack of dairy.

14 February 2019

I found time to read the Book of Mormon this morning. I read Ammoron's response to Moroni's request to trade captive families for prisoners. I thought that it was odd that he claimed that he is a Lamanite, when he is a descendant of Zoram. I think that people need to be careful with the philosophy or tradition that they subscribe to. Many people don't act themselves because the world has developed a philosophy or tradition to wrap everyone up in. I was also inspired to listen to Mormon Channel talk radio this morning. They were talking about a timely 100 year old talk, saying science and religion are opposites. There is a concept of blind doubt; just as blind faith. People need to wake up from their blind doubt,  blind faith, worldly philosophy, and tradition. 

"Each is a beloved spirit son or daughter of heavenly parents, and, as such, each has a divine nature and destiny. Gender is an essential characteristic of individual premortal, mortal, and eternal identity and purpose." (The Family: A Proclamation to the World)

Men do not define themselves. We have all been elected to a great role in the Kingdom of God, but we have to choose and seize our life eternal by faith in Christ, repentance, and beginning the covenant path with baptism.

I ran into the cycling girl in the elevator. She said is Arpenia, and interestingly enough it is of Armenia.

At work, I updated my QC log that I started with Complete Fusion Welding, adding most of the Columbia Stone QC items to keep us more accountable.

Before institute Jessica & I went to WinCo and ate out for Valentine's Day. I took the following notes at Institute:

In the revelations, the doctrines of the gospel are set forth with explanations about such fundamental matters as the nature of the Godhead, the origin of man, the reality of Satan, the purpose of mortality, the necessity for obedience, the need for repentance, the workings of the Holy Spirit, the ordinances and performances that pertain to salvation, the destiny of the earth, the future conditions of man after the Resurrection and the Judgment, the eternity of the marriage relationship, and the eternal nature of the family.   

Heaven's weeped as an angel in authority fell.   

"this generation shall have my word through you" (Joseph). D&C 5

The focus of the Doctrine & Covenants is our relationship with God.   

Why do members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints have more scripture is not the Bible the complete word of God?   

There is no end to the word of God. The word of God is revealed through his prophets, and this is his eternal pattern. All prophets recorded their revelations as scripture, and there are a lot more records than the contents of the Bible.       

There is a Joseph Smith Translation Bible side by side. Over 3000 verses were revised by the inspiration of God in the book.

Many sections of the Doctrine and Covenants is in response to reading scriptures.