WOULD YOU LISTEN? WOULD YOU OBEY?

If you received a text tomorrow that said: "Adam is coming to address his children on Saturday," would you go? 

If Enoch invited you to join his people in Zion, would you listen?

If Noah warned that the world would be destroyed if the people didn't return to God, would you repent and get on the ark?

Would I find blood on your door posts and lintels after a visit with Moses? Would you look upon the brazen serpent?

Since the beginning of time, God has called good men as prophets to carry His word to the people. A sincere reading of the Bible and the Book of Mormon will teach that while a few people listened, most did not.  Many readers say to themselves, "Were I there, I would listen and obey."  But would they? Would you?

200 years ago, a young boy prayed to understand what God wanted of him.  He prayer was answered in a most astonishing way.  Joseph Smith listened and he obeyed.  Through him, the Church of Jesus Christ was restored in its fullness upon the earth.  He, like others before him, was a prophet of God.

Since that time, they has been an unbroken line of priesthood authority leading and guiding Christ's Church.  Today, we have 15 apostles and prophets doing just that.  This weekend, we have the opportunity to hear God's word through them.

Will we listen?  Will be obey?  

WATCHMEN ON THE TOWER

Last Saturday, I wrote a post about Rosh Hashanah, the Jewish New Year.  It is the first of the sacred fall feasts of Israel.  It is sometimes called the Feast of the Trumpets because it is heralded in by the blowing of the Shofar, the rams horn trumpet. The blowing of the Shofar ushered in the fall holy days.  It also sounded a warning to Israel to return to her God.

The Prophet Ezekiel wrote of the Lord placing watchmen upon the tower (Ezekiel 33: 1-7).  Because of his higher elevation on the tower, the watchman could see the danger afar off, long before anyone living in the city was aware.  When he saw the enemy approaching, he sounded the alarm by blowing on the Shofar.

The Feast of the Trumpets sounds as a warning to Israel that they need to prepare.  They need to look into their own souls for any thought, word, or behavior that is out of line with the will of the Lord.  Rosh Hashanah then ushers in the 10 Days of Awe; a time of repentance and turning, away from the world and toward God.

This feast of Israel is of special significance to the founding of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. After four years of waiting, on September 21, 1827, the ancient prophet Moroni allowed the Prophet Joseph Smith to take possession of the Gold Plates.  That year, September 21 marked the beginning of Rosh Hashanah. A new watchman had been called to the tower and his receiving God's word fell as observant Jews around the world were sounding the warning on the Shofar: repent and prepare for Yom Kippur - the Day of Atonement.  Joseph's calling, and that of latter-day prophets who follow him, is the same: repent.  We are to prepare for the Second Coming of He who gave His life in the Ultimate Day of Atonement.

Moroni and Rosh Hashanah

This year, Yom Kippur falls on Monday, September 27. Five days later, on October 3 and 4, Latter-day Saints and others have the opportunity to hear fifteen modern Watchmen on the Tower.  General Conference in April was one such as had never been before.  I have faith that this October Conference will likewise be of utmost important.  

We have all seen the signs.  We know the fate of this nation and the world will be impacted by what happens in America on November 3,  2020.  Let us listen to our called and anointed Watchmen on the Tower and heed their words.  Let us strengthen our relationships with Jesus Christ.  Let us renew our faith.  Let us take stock and repent of anything out of harmony with God's teachings.  Let us seek to more fully align our wills with God's. In so doing, let us pay strict heed to Gods apostles and prophets.  Let us pray for our nation.

© Kathleen Rawlings Buntin Danielson September 2020

ACCOMPLISHMENT

Started a new book today.

Went from reading them to writing them.

Now my brain is working, I can write again

Yay me!

A CHANCE FOR A NEW BEGINNING

Rosh Hashanah marks the beginning of the Jewish New Year.  This year, it falls on this weekend: beginning at sundown on Friday the 18th and ending at sundown on Sunday the 20th. It is celebrated as one long day - 48 hours. It is important to Israel because it begins the Days of Awe in which devote Jews are to reflect on their lives and repent of their sins.  At the end of that time (this year on September 27) will be Yom Kippur, the Day of Atonement; the most holy day on the Jewish calendar.

Unlike the Gentile New Year, which has become a day of debauchery for many, Rosh Hashanah is a time for family, prayers, reading from the Torah both mornings of Rosh Hashanah.  Faithful Jews also blow the shofar,  a trumpet made of a rams horn the significance of which is a symbol of the Lord providing a ram in the thicket for Abraham to offer in lieu of his son, Isaac's, life. Special prayers are given each evening with the lighting of candles to symbolize the sincerity of the individual's repentance.

To a Christian such as I, the connection to Jesus Christ is clear.  When Abraham was asked to sacrifice the life of his son, he didn't understand.  But, nevertheless, he obeyed.  He and Isaac traveled quite a distance to the top of a specific hill designated by the Lord.  There, Abraham built an altar and prepared wood for a sacrificial fire.  He bound his son, preparatory to placing him on the altar. Isaac said to his father, "I see the altar and I see the wood, but where is the lamb?" Abraham answered "God will provide Himself a lamb."

However, before he could sacrifice his son, an angel intervened.  He delivered God's message to Abraham that he should not slay his son.  He proved the Lord that he was willing to give his son and that was sufficient. 

The Bible doesn't explain the reasoning very well, but the Prophet Jacob in the Book of Mormon does.  He states that it was accounted unto Abraham in the wilderness to be obedient unto the commands of God in offering up his son Isaac, which is in the similitude of God and his Only Begotten Son. (Jacob 4:5) Abraham told Isaac that God would provide himself a lamb.  Many think that refers to the ram caught in the thicket.  It doesn't.  A ram is not a lamb.  Look closely at the wording.  It doesn't say, God himself will provide a lamb. It says, God will provide Himself a lamb.

God Himself was that lamb.  John the Baptist called Him The Lamb of God and so He is.  Israel in Egypt sacrificed a lamb and painted its blood on the doorposts and lintels of their door.  They stayed inside their homes the night the angel of death came and it passed them buy because of the blood of the lamb. On the hill where Abraham prepared his sacrifice, millennia later, the Lamb of God became the ultimate sacrifice that we might by saved by the blood of the Lamb.

Even though we are of the Latter-day House of Israel and even though we no longer celebrate Rosh Hashanah, I think it would behoove us to take this time to ponder our own standing before God.  How sincere is our personal repentance? How closely have we aligned out will to His, as did Abraham? As one General Authority challenged, do we ask Him, "What lack I yet?" Every time I have asked that in prayer, He has answered, line-upon-line. 

God has provided Himself the Lamb.  Am I wise enough to have faith and repent and endure to the end that I might be saved by His blood? That is my heartfelt desire.

To all of my Jewish friends, have a blessed New Year.  May it be a sweet as apples dipped in honey.

© Kathleen Rawlings Buntin Danielson September 2020

PROMISED DESTRUCTION

When  Samuel the Lamanite Prophet spoke of Christ's coming birth, he promised light - a day and a night and a day with no darkness - and a new star; good tidings of great joy.  When he spoke of Christ's death, he foretold complete and palpable darkness, accompanied by great destruction and much sorrow.  8th and 9th chapters of the Book of 3 Nephi, we read of the literal fulfillment of this destruction and sorrow.

Here are a few excerpts of what occurred:

• A great storm, such as never before seen
• Thunder and lightening with no rain
• Shaking of the earth
• Zarahemla, burned
• Moroni sunk into the sea
• Moronihah covered by a great mountain of earth
• Tempests
• Whirlwinds that carried people away, never to be heard of again
• 
  In this diagram, you can see how a volcanic eruptions can bring down earth upon a city such as Moronihah and cause a tsunami to sink another city, such as Moroni, into the sea.  Volcanic "bombs" are quick to cause fire and devastation on areas such as Zarahemla. The great volcano on the island of the Minoans in 1600 B.C. likely accounts for Plato's tale of Atlantis sinking into the sea. Some think these seismic events may have triggered Egypt's 10 plagues.

• Level roads broken up and smooth places made rough
• Buildings of cities falling to the earth, killing people and leaving the city desolate
• Cities that were not totally destroyed were damaged almost beyond recognition
• Entire geographical region was deformed
• Broken rocks found everywhere, and seams and cracks upon all the face of the land

These things lasted about the space of three hours or more.  Earthquakes don't last that long.  But earthquake storms do and volcanic eruptions do.  After everything quieted, there was a darkness so vaporous that it could be felt; fires could not be kindled; stars, moon, and sun could not be seen for three days.

The Heart of Timpanogos

I once hiked to the cave in Mt. Timpanogos with my family.  When they turned off the lights, I experienced absolute darkness for the first and only time in my life.  I lifted my hand in front of my face and could not see it.  The Book of Mormon tells us that during the darkness following the destruction that there was great mourning and howling and weeping among the people continuously.  (v. 8:23)  I can well imagine.  

Do we have physical evidence that any of that happened in the Americas around 33-34 A.D.? In at least one place, we do, according to geologists and other scholars.  Their understanding comes from the science of plate tectonics.

After the death of my second husband, I did what I often do when grieving, I took a college class.  In this case, I took two, including one in the science of geology. One of the most interesting things I learned was the concept of plate tectonics.  According to this theory, developed only in the 1960s, the crust of the earth is not one solid piece but a group of plates that move with the movement of the heat of the magma beneath them.  Because of this, they are prone to collide with each other. When that happens, one of two things happen: they pull away from each other; one will pass under the other; they will slide back and forth in opposite directions.  This is called a strike-slip fault. This simple diagram shows the differences among these three types of faults.

You can see from the map that there are several places on earth where the area is honeycombed with strike-slip faults.  One of these is in Central America where the Caribbean plate interacts with the Cocos plate, the Nazca plate, and the North and South American plates. This part of the world is a disaster waiting to happen. Do we have a similar strike-slip fault today?  

We do. San Andreas.  Makes me wonder if these fires in California, Washington, and Oregon are a foreboding warning of other possibilities? 

If they are a warning, what would God tell American's to do to avert disaster? The same thing He told the Nephites:

Therefore, whoso repenteth and cometh unto me as a little child, him will I receive, for of such is the kingdom of God. . . . therefore repent, and come unto me ye ends of the earth, and be saved. 

Is anybody listening? Too many have lost, not only the Spirit, but the innate Light of Christ.  It stops their eyes so they can't see and their ears that they can't hear.

© Kathleen Rawlings Buntin Danielson September 2020

WHAT WOULD I SAY?

This week in our Come Follow Me curriculum is the study of the destruction in the New World at Christ's crucifixion and His ultimate visit to the Nephites who were spared. I love the site Book of Mormon Central for getting insights into the week's scriptures that may not have occurred to me. 

This morning, I watched a presentation called One-by-One from Book of Mormon Central.  One of the presenters (Taylor) described the moment when Jesus invited the people to come to Him one at a time and feel the nail prints in His hands and feet.  He asked that If you were there, what would you say to Him?" Of all the possibilities - I love you, thank you, the one that came first to my mind was Forgive me!

I immediately began to second guess myself (I do that a lot!) but even as I sat with it for awhile, I truly believe that is what I would say - that is, if I could actually say anything being so overwhelmed by emotion and awe.  Forgive me!

Taylor then mentioned that the scripture says that the crowd said "Hosanna." We use Hosanna a lot, most notably in the Hosanna Shout in our most solemn assemblies.  The crowd in Jerusalem also shouted hosanna when Jesus entered the city on what we now call Palm Sunday.  What does hosanna mean?

Tyler (the other presenter) is a language exert and Hebrew scholar.  He pointed out that the word comes from two Hebrew roots:

hosa or hosea, which is an actual root from which Jesus' name (Jesua) is derived.

na means, among other things, save.  

That says to me that hosanna means Jesus save me!" 

I was right on target all along.

What would His answer be to me? I think it would be: "I already have."

© Kathleen Rawlings Buntin Danielson September 2020

SEPTEMBER 12 - A DAY THAT SHOULD LIVE IN OUR MEMORIES

Nineteen years ago yesterday, America received a wake-up call it had not experienced since Pearl Harbor. The 1941 attack resulted in awakening a sleeping tiger and the Greatest Generation answered and saved the world from indisputable evil.  In 2001, we woke up also, but to our own vulnerability. 

Nineteen years ago today, I had hope that we had a new generation who would rise to the call and save the world from wanton destruction and terror. It didn't.  Brian Mast responded what he witnessed on 9/11/01.  Later, he wrote for Fox News:

That morning after the terrorist attacks we all woke up unified as Americans — no matter the color of our skin or where we worshipped, what city we lived in, or how much money we had. Out of the darkness of 9/11 came a bright moment of clarity and unity on 9/12 that we must never forget.

So if on Sept. 11 we remember the heroism so many displayed, on Sept. 12 we should strive to emulate it and rediscover that unity we once knew.

Brave men and women of our military, law enforcement, first responders and countless others gave their lives on 9/11 and in the years after so that all Americans could wake up each morning free from threat. They died so the rest of us could wake up with the opportunity to pursue our dreams and strive to be the best version of ourselves.

We cannot hope to repay these heroes for what they’ve done. We can only ask: What would those who died ask of us?

Nineteen years ago today, I would like to ask that same question: What would those who died ask of us?

I think they would ask us to remember the unity of 9/12 and compare it to the civil unrest (war?) going on to divide us today.  

I think they would ask us to remember the courage of those heroes on Flight 93 who sacrificed their lives - knowing well that losing their lives is what it would cost them - to fight back and bring down the plane before it would reach Washington, D.C. and it's target.  Then we should compare it to the cowardice of groups such as Antifa and BLM whose response to one event became their excuse to murder, riot, plunder and destroy. They chant "death to America" and destroy the innocent in the rage and hatred.

I think they would ask us to remember the iconic picture of the American flag being raised by New York firefighters atop the ruins reminiscent of U.S. Marines raising the flag on Iwo Jima.  Then compare that to pictures of  rioters torching, destroying, killing, and chanting "Death to America" because of the death of one man in questionable circumstances that was certainly no Pearl Harbor.

I think they would ask us to remember pictures in the media of the hundreds of people of all races, religions, and political parties, lined up to donate blood at blood banks across America and compare that to daily (inflated) COVID numbers that have created a panic mentality that has shut down this nation and many others. Look at pictures of thousands of Americans in their masks.  Are they being medically correct or politically correct?  

Several years ago, I read a fascinating book that was written by a Messianic Jew named Jonathon Cahn.  The Harbinger compares the events of 9/11 to parallel events just prior to the destruction of the Kingdom of Israel. The book is a novel, but makes compelling argument that we are declaring our doom by ignoring the divine warning of 9/11.  He bases the book on the response from Israel in Isaiah 9:10: The bricks are fallen down, but we will rebuild with hewn stones: the sycamores are cut down, but we will change them to cedars. 

Representative John Edwards, then a candidate for Vice President, quoted this scripture in the nation's capital on 9/11/04.  So did at least a dozen other people in high places in the weeks, months, and years following 9/11.  In so doing, they inadvertently linked America to ancient Israel and, according to Cahn, to Israel's fate. What these people forgot was the 9th verse of that same chapter that the inhabitants of Israel say in the pride and stoutness of heart.  This wasn't a cry of victory but an angry and defiant shout of pride and arrogance.

Were the event of 9/11 a wake-up call for America?  I feel confident that they were.  Did we listen? No. Just like the people of Isaiah's day, we allowed our pride in our own invulnerability to blind us to our vulnerability without God.  We have broken our part of the American covenant. We have turned God out of our homes, our schools, our places of business, and our government. How can we ask God to bless America when America has rejected Him?

Is God still trying to get through to us?  I bear testimony that He is: pestilence, plagues of locust, out-of-control fires, volcanos, earthquakes, tornados, and hurricanes in addition to rampant sin and human depravity.  Yet we are still arrogant and drenched in sin. Those of us who are still trying to keep have a responsibility to pray for America and her leaders who are trying to preserve this nation, the past free place on earth and a land choice above all other lands.

I promise to do so.  Will you?

© Kathleen Rawlings Buntin Danielson September 2020