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Wednesday, August 21, 2013

Daily Thoughts

In the Book of Mormon we read about how God will judge everyone according to their works that they performed during the days of their probation, and the righteous will be separated from the wicked. If a person dies in their wickedness they will be cast off as to things which are spiritual and pertaining to righteousness. If their works are filthy, they cannot dwell in the Kingdom of God. The wicked are rejected fro the righteous and cannot partake of the fruit of the tree of life, which is most desirable above all other fruits.  1 Nephi 15:30-36 "And I said unto them that our father also saw that the justice of God did also divide the wicked from the righteous; and the brightness thereof was like unto the brightness of a flaming fire, which ascendeth up unto God forever and ever, and hath no end. And they said unto me: Doth this thing mean the torment of the body in the days of probation, or doth it mean the final state of the soul after the death of the temporal body, or doth it speak of the things which are temporal?  And it came to pass that I said unto them that it was a representation of things both temporal and spiritual; for the day should come that they must be judged of their works, yea, even the works which were done by the temporal body in their days of probation.  Wherefore, if they should die in their wickedness they must be cast off also, as to the things which are spiritual, which are pertaining to righteousness; wherefore, they must be brought to stand before God, to be judged of their works; and if their works have been filthiness they must needs be filthy; and if they be filthy it must needs be that they cannot dwell in the kingdom of God; if so, the kingdom of God must be filthy also. But behold, I say unto you, the kingdom of God is not filthy, and there cannot any unclean thing enter into the kingdom of God; wherefore there must needs be a place of filthiness prepared for that which is filthy. And there is a place prepared, yea, even that awful hell of which I have spoken, and the devil is the preparator of it; wherefore the final state of the souls of men is to dwell in the kingdom of God, or to be cast out because of that justice of which I have spoken. Wherefore, the wicked are rejected from the righteous, and also from that tree of life, whose fruit is most precious and most desirable above all other fruits; yea, and it is the greatest of all the gifts of God. And thus I spake unto my brethren. Amen."

In the Old Testament we read that the Lord reminded the children of Israel that He had brought them up out of the land of Egypt, to be their God.  And they should be holy, as He is holy.  Leviticus 11:45 "For I am the Lord that bringeth you up out of the land of Egypt, to be your God: ye shall therefore be holy, for I am holy."

Some verses with a thought booklet tell us that Elijah was a human just like we are, but when he prayed earnestly that rain wouldn't fall, it didn't rain for three and a half years.  Then when he prayed again, the sky sent down rain and the earth brought forth crops. Since Elijah could start and stop a drought trough prayer, obviously he was a man of mighty, powerful prayer.  But there was one prayer of Elijah's that God did not answer.  When he became depressed and discouraged, he sat under a Juniper tree and asked God to let him die.  Instead of answering his prayer, the Lord sent him an angel to tell him to rise up and eat. Sometimes God answers our prayers just the way we want Him to.  Other times He tells us no, or has something better in mind for us.  He knows what is best for us and will answer our prayers accordingly.  We can safely place our trust in Him. From these verses we also learn something else--that even the best of people sometimes become discouraged and disheartened and feel like giving up.  But if they turn to the Lord, He will help them.  James 5:17-18 "Elias was a man subject to like passions as we are, and he prayed earnestly that it might not rain: and it rained not on the earth by the space of three years and six months. And he prayed again, and the heaven gave rain, and the earth brought forth her fruit."  1 Kings 19:4-5 "But he himself went a day's journey into the wilderness, and came and sat down under a juniper tree: and he requested for himself that he might die; and said, It is enough; now, O Lord, take away my life; for I am not better than my fathers. And as he lay and slept under a juniper tree, behold, then an angel touched him, and said unto him, Arise and eat."
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