The Family: Under Attack

I have decided that the two best ways to learn how to practice the law of consecration are marriage and family experience. Is it any wonder that both are under attack so fiercely?

Today the most watched talk on BYU Broadcasting was the one given by Julie Beck at the BYU Women’s conference, May 1, 2009. Her talk was called “Nourishing and Protecting Home and Family.”

In her talk she emphasized the doctrine of the family as summarized so beautifully in the Proclamation on the Family. She also explained the theology of the family, or as it is more commonly referred to, the great plan of salvation or happiness. The three pillars of this theology are:

1) The Creation- of this beautiful earth for families.

2) The Fall- as a means for families to grow and increase.

3) The Atonement- as an event that will tie families together forever.

Elder Robert D. Hales explained, “In the beginning, Adam and Eve were married for time and all eternity by the Lord. The organization of the family existed in the heavens before the world was formed and was historically started with Adam and Eve on the earth, as recorded in Genesis. The family will exist eternally.”

Both Adam and Eve had leadership roles in their family as given to them in their assignments. They got their responsibilities by virtue of that celestial marriage and sealing.

Ezra Taft Benson taught that this was the order of the priesthood. He said, “This order is otherwise described in modern revelation as an order of family government. When a man and a women enter into a covenant with God, just as did Adam and Eve, to be sealed for eternity, to have posterity, and to do the will and work of God throughout mortality. This order of the priesthood has been on the earth since the beginning and it is the only means by which we can see the face of God and live.”

Sister Beck explained that marriage is an order of the priesthood, which prepares us for the blessing of Eternal life.

Elder David A. Bednar has taught us two important reasons why marriage is essential. “Reason one, is because the natures of male and female spirits complete and perfect each other, and therefore men and women are intended to progress together toward exaltation. And reason two, by divine design, both man and woman are needed to bring children into mortality and to provide the best setting for the rearing and nurturing of children.”

Elder Boyd K, Packer said, “The great plan of happiness, revealed to prophets, is a plan for a happy family. It is the love story between husband and wife, parents and children, that renews itself through the ages. Nothing is more important to the Church, and to civilization, than the family.”

Sister Beck very beautifully explained that families are about “us” and “we”, while the world preaches about “I” and “Me”. It is apparent to me that Satan wishes to dissuade us from living the Celestial law of consecration. “Anti-Christ teachings and principles are always Anti-family and that Anti-family teachings and policies are also Anti-Christ.” I believe that Satan wants us to be unwilling to submit and to be proud and unteachable. Families are the place that we learn how to be consecrated to the Lord, by practice daily, in lessons of unselfish behavior and charity to others. It is no wonder the family is under attack, the importance of the lessons learned in the family are Eternal.

Sister Beck then shared a statement from a talk given in 1980 by Spencer W. Kimball, called “Families Can Be Eternal”.

“There are those who would define the family in such a nontraditional way that they would define it out of existence.

We of all people, brothers and sisters, should not be taken in by the specious arguments that the family unit is somehow tied to a particular phase of development a mortal society is going through. We are free to resist those moves which downplay the significance of the family and which play up the significance of selfish individualism. We know the family to be eternal. We know that when things go wrong in the family, things go wrong in every other institution in society.

Furthermore, many of the social restraints which in the past have helped to reinforce and to shore up the family are dissolving and disappearing. The time will come when only those who believe deeply and actively in the family will be able to preserve their families in the midst of the gathering evil around us.”

This was such a testimony for me of how a prophet of God surely saw our day. As a watchman on the tower, he warned us of the attack that would come upon this Eternal unit. Our salvation and exaltation depends on how we view the doctrine of the family.

If you haven’t had a chance to listen to this amazing talk on the doctrine of the family, please take the time to do it.

Brain Sweat

In the Doctrine and Covenants, section 100 we read:

5 Therefore, verily I say unto you, lift up your voices unto this people; speak the thoughts that I shall put into your hearts, and you shall not be confounded before men;

6 For it shall be given you in the very hour, yea, in the very moment, what ye shall say.

As a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, I love the comfort that this scripture gives to me when I am prompted to share my testimony of certain principles of the gospel with others. But, as comforting as it is, I believe at times this scripture may be used by some as a way to excuse their lack of study of the scriptures themselves.

Elder B. H. Roberts, who was one of the seven presidents of the seventy during his life time, who also wrote the Comprehensive History of the Church, and was known as the “war horse” for the church, shared his thoughts on this scripture in this way.

“He constantly reminded the Brethren that the Spirit would not draw on an empty well. The divine promise, which he took literally, ‘it shall be given you in the very hour’ what you shall say, had an absolute precondition: ‘Treasure up in your minds continually the words of life.’ He stressed the ‘continually.’ ‘Mormonism is for thinkers!’ he often said. He loved the statement of the Prophet on the things of God: ‘Time and experience and careful and ponderous and solemn thoughts can only find them out.’ To him that meant ‘brain sweat.’ ‘Eternal, restless thought that keeps out from the frontiers of discovery is as much a weariness to the slothful, as it is a joy to the alert and active and noble minded.’ (As taken from the book Defender of the Faith, The BH Roberts Story by Truman G. Madsen)

From one who hates to sweat from physical exertion, “brain sweat” seems like a great form of exercise to me.

The Priesthood: Sworn By An Oath

In Biblical Old Testament times the process of swearing by an oath was common practice. It was a way to assure another that you “gave them your word.” Unlike most situations today, your word was your bond. There was no signing of contracts with notaries involved, it was simply your word or oath, that sealed the deal. We can see this very clearly displayed from an incident in the Book of Mormon. In 1 Nephi chapter 4 the Lord commands Nephi to kill Laban so that they can retrieve the plates. Zoram, who was the servant of Laban, is tricked into getting the records and following Nephi out of town. Upon seeing his great mistake he contemplates going back to get help.

1 Nephi 4:31 And now I, Nephi, being a man large in stature, and also having received much strength of the Lord, therefore I did seize upon the servant of Laban, and held him, that he should not flee.

32 And it came to pass that I spake with him, that if he would hearken unto my words, as the Lord liveth, and as I live, even so that if he would hearken unto our words, we would spare his life.

33 And I spake unto him, even with an oath, that he need not fear; that he should be a free man like unto us if he would go down in the wilderness with us.

34 And I also spake unto him, saying: Surely the Lord hath commanded us to do this thing; and shall we not be diligent in keeping the commandments of the Lord? Therefore, if thou wilt go down into the wilderness to my father thou shalt have place with us.

35 And it came to pass that Zoram did take courage at the words which I spake. Now Zoram was the name of the servant; and he promised that he would go down into the wilderness unto our father. Yea, and he also made an oath unto us that he would tarry with us from that time forth.

36 Now we were desirous that he should tarry with us for this cause, that the Jews might not know concerning our flight into the wilderness, lest they should pursue us and destroy us.

37 And it came to pass that when Zoram had made an oath unto us, our fears did cease concerning him.

Even though an oath was fixed and sure, there were different levels of oaths. When they swore by an oath they would swear upon something that was important to them. For example, they would swear by their family, their life, or their Lord. The strongest oath was the one taken that was upon the Lord because it was of greatest value. The terminology would be something like, “I swear by my life that I will do this thing, and if I do not, then I would suffer my life to be taken as payment.”

Notice when Nephi made the oath to Zoram he used the words “as the Lord liveth, and as I live”. This terminology would have been the highest oath that could be given. Zoram’s fears completely left him upon hearing this oath, and he too entered into an oath that he would “tarry with them from that time forth.” Instantly all their “fears did cease concerning him.” The oath, or word, was unshakable.

When it comes to the Oath that is involved in the Oath and Covenant of the priesthood, God is the one swearing the oath. It is also important to note that “He swore by himself”.

Genesis 14:30 For God having sworn unto Enoch and unto his seed with an oath by himself;

This is the highest form of an oath that could be given, God swearing by God. This is to let us, as His children know that this priesthood power is “sure”. How blessed we are to have this priesthood “after the order of the Son of God” with the promises that it brings.

What is The Oath and Covenant of the Priesthood?

Where do you find the actual "Oath and Covenant" of the Priesthood?
Who makes the covenant?
Who takes an oath?
Why is it called the “oath and covenant of the Priesthood”?

These and many more questions plagued me the first year I taught Doctrine and Covenants in early morning seminary. I had come to Section 84 where the Lord outlined the beautiful patriarchal order of the priesthood, but still could not find the answers. In Section 84 we are instructed regarding the blessings for obtaining and magnifying the priesthood.

Section 84:33 For whoso is faithful unto the obtaining these two priesthoods of which I have spoken, and the magnifying their calling, are sanctified by the Spirit unto the renewing of their bodies.

34 They become the sons of Moses and of Aaron and the seed of Abraham, and the church and kingdom, and the elect of God.

35 And also all they who receive this priesthood receive me, saith the Lord;

36 For he that receiveth my servants receiveth me;

37 And he that receiveth me receiveth my Father;

38 And he that receiveth my Father receiveth my Father’s kingdom; therefore all that my Father hath shall be given unto him.

39 And this is according to the oath and covenant which belongeth to the priesthood.


It even refers to the “oath and covenant of the priesthood”, but still not a clue is given to what is meant by that terminology. I asked everyone I could find, and believe it or not, the answers I got would surprise you. The funniest one I think I got was, “That is just what they call it!” These questions were never fully answered until I was privileged to teach Old Testament. Among the “sealed portion” of the scriptures, known as the Joseph Smith Translation in the book of Genesis chapter 14, Joseph Smith adds back 15 additional verses that containing the plain and precious truths lost to the world concerning the “Oath and Covenant of the Priesthood.”

Some background information leading up to this point: Lot, Abraham’s nephew had just been captured by a league of five kings who were in the surrounding area of Sodom where Lot dwelt. Abraham formed a group of men to go and battle these kings and rescue Lot. With the Lord on the side of righteousness, Abraham who was still at this point known as Abram, was successful and conquered their enemies. He subsequently had received goods referred to as “spoil” because of the conquest. Instead of keeping it for himself, he went to pay “tithes of all” to Melchizedek, the king of Salem. Joseph Smith then adds back this beautiful description of Melchizedek and the priesthood which he holds.

As you read the following verse... look for who specifically makes the oath.


25 And Melchizedek lifted up his voice and blessed Abram.

26 Now Melchizedek was a man of faith, who wrought righteousness; and when a child he feared God, and stopped the mouths of lions, and quenched the violence of fire.

27 And thus, having been approved of God, he was ordained an high priest after the order of the covenant which God made with Enoch,

28 It being after the order of the Son of God; which order came, not by man, nor the will of man; neither by father nor mother; neither by beginning of days nor end of years; but of God;

29 And it was delivered unto men by the calling of his own voice, according to his own will, unto as many as believed on his name.

30 For God having sworn unto Enoch and unto his seed with an oath by himself; that every one being ordained after this order and calling should have power, by faith, to break mountains, to divide the seas, to dry up waters, to turn them out of their course;

31 To put at defiance the armies of nations, to divide the earth, to break every band, to stand in the presence of God; to do all things according to his will, according to his command, subdue principalities and powers; and this by the will of the Son of God which was from before the foundation of the world.

32 And men having this faith, coming up unto this order of God, were translated and taken up into heaven.

33 And now, Melchizedek was a priest of this order; therefore he obtained peace in Salem, and was called the Prince of peace.

34 And his people wrought righteousness, and obtained heaven, and sought for the city of Enoch which God had before taken, separating it from the earth, having reserved it unto the latter days, or the end of the world;

35 And hath said, and sworn with an oath, that the heavens and the earth should come together; and the sons of God should be tried so as by fire.

36 And this Melchizedek, having thus established righteousness, was called the king of heaven by his people, or, in other words, the King of peace.

37 And he lifted up his voice, and he blessed Abram, being the high priest, and the keeper of the storehouse of God;

38 Him whom God had appointed to receive tithes for the poor.

39 Wherefore, Abram paid unto him tithes of all that he had, of all the riches which he possessed, which God had given him more than that which he had need.

40 And it came to pass, that God blessed Abram, and gave unto him riches, and honor, and lands for an everlasting possession; according to the covenant which he had made, and according to the blessing wherewith Melchizedek had blessed him.


God, who swore by Himself, made the oath. Suddenly the words in Section 84:40 became more meaningful to me, “Therefore, all those who receive the priesthood, receive this oath and covenant of my Father, which he cannot break, neither can it be moved.” His promises are sure, least He cease to be God. He has sworn by an oath, that the covenants entered into are made sure by that eternal power called the priesthood. We are simply made beneficiaries of that covenant by obedience to the terms. The terms He has set are to make Him our God, submitting all that we have to him. If we can do that... the promises are sure.

After all God swore by an oath.

Queen of Alll Things Awe-Summ!!!

When Nancy from the Blog Something Marvellous sent me the notice that she had awarded me the most coveted Queen of Alll things Awe-Summm award I simply chuckled and thought to myself, she doesn’t know me very well, does she! LOL But then I simply took a moment to ponder this award as a symbol as it applied to a very important gospel principle. The principle I am thinking of is that of the importance of covenants.

As a member of the LDS Church who has entered into the Temple and made covenants with the Lord, I have actually been given the possibility of this award, as set by the terms of the covenant. This covenant, formally named the Abrahamic Covenant, outlines the terms of the relationship of the Father with the children of Abraham, requiring those who wish Him to be their God, to “walk with Him” in obedience to His Word. In reward for this submission of will, the Father has promised all that He has.

To receive the award, or for symbolic purposes the promise of being the “Queen of all things awesome”, I must simply bind the Lord, or hold Him to his word, by my obedience to my end of the deal. I really do have the potential to become literally a “Queen of all things awesome”, and a priestess by right. This thought is boggling to my mind at times, but therein lies my hope as well. Perhaps Nancy does know me better than I think!

So to all my female friends and fellow saints who have entered into sacred covenants, I award this honor of someday being Queen of Alll things Awe-Summm, but until then, this cute honor, to remind us to be obedient, must suffice!

Here are the rules:

List 7 things that make you Awe-Summ and then pass the award on to bloggers. Make sure to tag your recipients and let them know they know. Also link back to the QUEEN that tagged you.

1) I am a daughter of God and a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints.

2) I understand my divine role as wife and mother and am thankful to be both.

3) One of my favorite things to do is study the scriptures, especially with "study buddies."

4) I am a Family History freak! I love to do genealogy...really anybodies!

5) I belong to a Young Adult Branch even though I am a "Old Dog".

6) I love spending time in The Doghouse, real and virtual.

7) It is easy for me to love others, and I am a "hugger".

I guess it is now my turn to pass on the crown....but my Queenly friends have made it clear it is to stop here!

The Vow of A Nazarite

Numbers 6:2 Speak unto the children of Israel, and say unto them, When either man or woman shall separate themselves to vow a vow of a Nazarite, to separate themselves unto the Lord:

3 He shall separate himself from wine and strong drink, and shall drink no vinegar of wine, or vinegar of strong drink, neither shall he drink any liquor of grapes, nor eat moist grapes, or dried.

4 All the days of his separation shall he eat nothing that is made of the vine tree, from the kernels even to the husk.

5 All the days of the vow of his separation there shall no razor come upon his head: until the days be fulfilled, in the which he separateth himself unto the Lord, he shall be holy, and shall let the locks of the hair of his head grow.

6 All the days that he separateth himself unto the Lord he shall come at no dead body.

7 He shall not make himself unclean for his father, or for his mother, for his brother, or for his sister, when they die: because the consecration of his God is upon his head.

8 All the days of his separation he is holy unto the Lord.

A Nazarite is a consecrated man or woman. According to the bible dictionary “it is a man under a vow to abstain from wine, from any cutting of the hair and any contact with the dead. The vow might be lifelong, or for a short, definite period.”

“Nazarite, Hebrew nazar, dedicate, is a vow of a peculiar kind which may be taken by either sex that sets them apart from others for the service of God. The vow may be for life or a definite period of time.

The term "nazarite" comes from the verb nazar meaning to separate, or with persons, to separate them from others, so they are distinguishable, and consecrated to God (Genesis 49:26; Deuteronomy 33:16). Others hold that the word nezer, a diadem, contains the orginal concept of nazar, which will then radically signify a crown, and the hair is regarded as a crown to the person. In accordance to this view, the Nazarite is a crowned one, because he has "the crown of God upon his head" (Numbers 6:7), evidently in allusion to the mass of uncut hair, which was considered an ornament (2 Samuel 14:25, 26).


The Nazarite, the one taking the vow, separated himself from others while remaining in the world by consecrating himself to God for a certain period of time, although there have been life-long Nazarites. The uncut hair of the Nazarite also distinguishes him as being consecrated to the Lord, and signifies his vital powers which he rendered to God. The hair is his diadem of consecration, and like the anointed priest he must not defile it by approaching the dead. Some rabbis discouraged the taking of the Nazrite for more than thirty days because it is against the spirit of Judaism. The Nazarite laws could only be kept in Erez Israel (the promised land).”
(Sources:Unger, Merrill F., Unger's Bible Dictionary, Chicago, Moody Press, 1966, pp. 779-780
Bowker, John, The Oxford Dictionary of World Religions, New York, Oxford University Press, 1997, p. 689 )


Are we all not attempting to become consecrated to the Lord? As LDS members we too have a food requirement, known as the Word of Wisdom, and are also instructed in the manner in which we should dress, or given council on our appearance. The “For the Strength of Youth” pamphlet outlines that code very beautifully and it applies to all members of any age. We are also cautioned about those with whom we associate and encouraged to surround ourselves with others who are like minded in their beliefs and values.

In fact, these three requirements are very specifically discussed previous to entering into the House of the Lord or the Holy Temple.

Do we strive to keep the Word of Wisdom?
Do we wear the clothing we received?
Do we associate with any organization or individual who would be in conflict with our beliefs?

By becoming consecrated in these ways we are allowed to “separate” ourselves from the world and enter into a Holy place, perhaps even our very own Erez Israel.

One LDS Bloggers Journey

Even before Elder Ballard gave his talk called “Using New Media to Support the Work of the Church” to the graduates at BYU Hawaii back in December 2007, I was involved in On-line discussions about the LDS Church and some of the core doctrinal beliefs we have. My friend Kathryn, LDS Nana, was the one who persuaded me to get involved and “speak out” to teach correctly so that “others would not have a chance to define our beliefs for us.”

My first experience with On-Line discussion came in a forum called On-Faith with Michael Otterson. On-faith discussions are facilitated though the Washington Post, so needless to say it was like being thrown to the wolves! (I wouldn’t suggest it if you are new to On-Line conversations!)

My next experience with the Internet was through a website called Hubpages. It was at Hubpages that I became In The Doghouse and started writing small articles on several different subjects. At the time Kathryn and I were the only ones there who published positive articles about the LDS Church. Hubpages has been a great place to learn about Internet etiquette and community involvement. To date I have published 104 Hubs with 64 of them being directly related to the Church.

Sometime after my adventure started at Hubpages, I decided to write some of my more personal observations and feelings I have about LDS principles and doctrine in a different avenue, and that was the beginning of this BLOG. I have really been having the most fun writing here, in my own little corner of the Blogosphere. Besides writing on this BLOG I have actively searched for other LDS Blogs, and have been really inspired by reading the insights that these great LDS Bloggers share On-line.

My most recent publication on Hubpages is a Hub called, LDS Bloggers. It is simply an article sharing a list of my favorite LDS Blogs. Perhaps you might be interested in seeing what places I haunt on the Blogosphere... if so go and check this link for more information!

I give a big thank you to all LDS Bloggers who willingly share their insights and observations about the LDS Church in a positive way to the world, and encourage others to do the same.

From the words of Elder Ballard:

“Now, to you who are graduating today and all other faithful members of the Church, as you graduate from this wonderful university, may I ask that you join the conversation by participating on the Internet, particularly the New Media, to share the gospel and to explain in simple, clear terms the message of the Restoration. Most of you already know that if you have access to the Internet you can start a blog in minutes and begin sharing what you know to be true. You can download videos from Church and other appropriate sites, including Newsroom at LDS.org, and send them to your friends. You can write to media sites on the Internet that report on the Church, and voice your views as to the accuracy of the reports. This, of course, requires that you, all members of the Church, understand the basic, fundamental principles of the gospel.


We are living in a world saturated with all kinds of voices. Perhaps now, more than ever, we have a major responsibility as Latter-day Saints to define ourselves, instead of letting others define us. Far too many people have a poor understanding of the Church because most of the information they hear about us is from news media reports that are often driven by controversies. Too much attention to controversy has a negative impact on peoples’ perceptions of what the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints really is.”

If you are not quite ready to take this challenge yet, there is still a great work you can do...may I suggest that when you read information On-line that is “of good report” take time to add a “second witness” to the truth being shared by way of a comment. It will encourage those who are trying to share, and also add your testimony to that which has been given.

Perhaps together we can really make a difference one reader at a time.