Sunday, February 14, 2021

Be Still and know that I am God


We are a people of faith, although not always faithful.  But hopefully we repent and grow.  We believe in prayer and miracles.  We see and acknowledge them frequently.  You can ask almost any member in any ward to identify a miracle in their life or the life of a loved one and they will speak of miraculous healings through priesthood blessings, they will tell of meeting financial obligations when despite rough times they had paid their tithing or they will offer up stories of loved ones who lost their faith and later returned to the fold after long periods of  love and fellowshipping.


In hindsight, God  always comes to our aid.  We cling to scriptural stories of valiant victories and redeeming rescues.  Maybe it’s our human nature and part of our existence but often these victories and rescues seem almost immediate when looking at them in the rear view mirror of life.


My question today is how do we view these trials and temptations, ailments and adversities when we are in the midst of them?   How do we keep the faith necessary to get us to that point when the trial is in the rear view mirror?  Sometimes we exercise faith to fasting and prayer, sometimes prayer only other times we do nothing more than wish and complain.  How do we respond when our life experiences are not yet faith filled stories but are still pain inflicting  problems, incessant inconveniences or heart breaking hills yet to climb.


There is a saying “Time heals all wounds”.  Time and waiting can indeed be a factor in weathering a trial but faithless waiting for time to drone on can also lead to bitterness and resentment and even less trust in our Father in Heaven.


Psalms tells us “Be still and know that I am God” -That wise counsel suggests that patience is often required.  Patience which exercises a belief that in the end God will lead us to what is best.  We are a driven people and it is difficult for us to place our struggles and difficulties in God’s hands and recognize His timing.  We have heard and probably even recited the story when  “Brigham Young was hung up on a sandbar crossing a river on the plains. His companion, troubled, said, “Let’s pray.” Brigham replied, “Pray? I prayed this morning. Let’s get out and push.” Times of action are always around us, but I am talking of times when our actions seem fruitless and futile no matter how well intended.  What if there is no end in sight?  How do we cope when we fear looking in the rear view mirror may require us to peer back from the eternities?


In October 2020 General Conference Elder Holland said,

“there will be times in our lives when even our best spiritual effort and earnest, pleading prayers do not yield the victories for which we have yearned”

He goes on to say,

“I offer you my apostolic promise that they are heard and they are answered, though perhaps not at the time or in the way we wanted. But they are always answered at the time and in the way an omniscient and eternally compassionate parent should answer them.”


“Be still and know that I am God” may not cure our cancer whether physical, emotional or spiritual; but it can give us peace in times of great anxiety or turmoil.  It can be the required respite to refuel ourselves enough to carry on and endure to the end.


In having a discussion about Covid and the difficulties that have been all around us during the past year,  -I apologize for paraphrasing the conversation, a wise friend said,  “with all the prayers and fasting, if it were God’s plan to remove the disease he would have, he must have other things for us to learn or experience by us continuing to deal with it”.  


Please forgive me for injecting a small personal opinion here.  I dislike the phrase “when things get back to normal.”  If normal was where we needed to be, I doubt the pandemic would still be among us.  Let’s continue to look for new ways to act, to minister, to do what we can do without feeling that our only options are the old ways.  I am reminded of times  President Mecham would suggest getting rid of the unnecessary traditions of the fathers.


Elder Holland again, 

“The point is that faith means trusting God in good times and bad, even if that includes some suffering until we see His arm revealed in our behalf. That can be difficult in our modern world when many have come to believe that the highest good in life is to avoid all suffering, that no one should ever anguish over anything. But that belief will never lead us to “the measure of the stature of the fulness of Christ.”


“one’s life … cannot be both faith-filled and stress-free.” It simply will not work “to glide naively through life,” saying as we sip another glass of lemonade, “Lord, give me all thy choicest virtues, but be certain not to give me grief, nor sorrow, nor pain, nor opposition. Please do not let anyone dislike me or betray me, and above all, do not ever let me feel forsaken by Thee or those I love. In fact, Lord, be careful to keep me from all the experiences that made Thee divine. And then, when the rough sledding by everyone else is over, please let me come and dwell with Thee, where I can boast about how similar our strengths and our characters are as I float along on my cloud of comfortable Christianity.”


Elder Holland goes on to remind us “Christianity is comforting, but it is often not comfortable”


I spent two years as a missionary in a country where baptisms were few and far between (averaging only about 100 per year for our whole mission).  Where teaching appointments were also infrequent.  Our time was spent, knocking doors and stopping people on busy streets to see if they, for a moment would like to talk about God.  When our efforts led to someone showing interest in our message, seldom would the finding missionaries see that person in the waters of baptism.  Those commitments, when they happened, often occurred several companionships later.  We complained and commiserated but eventually continued with faith but often only hope that seeds had been planted for future missionaries.  In the rear view mirror, I doubt anyone in that country remembers me or my message but the experiences I had there feed me spiritually to this day and are of an eternal nature.


Elder Holland spoke of Liberty jail and the experiences Joseph and the early saints had in such a terrible place.  I love the revelations in the  Doctrine and Covenants.  I can’t imagine not having sections 121, 122 and 123.  I encourage you all to review those sections when times are rough.  In hindsight, these experiences were necessary to provide the sacred scripture we now hold dear.


I close with one more statement from Elder Holland’s talk:


“COVID and cancer, doubt and dismay, financial trouble and family trials. When will these burdens be lifted? The answer is “by and by.” And whether that be a short period or a long one is not always ours to say, but by the grace of God, the blessings will come to those who hold fast to the gospel of Jesus Christ. That issue was settled in a very private garden and on a very public hill in Jerusalem long ago.”

I add my testimony to his Jesus is the Christ and lives today.  He knows each one of us individually and feels our joys and our sorrows.  We can have peace in knowing that he is aware and desires to bless us in the best ways possible.



Sunday, April 16, 2017

Doubly Blessed at Easter

Easter is always a happy time for me as I often think  of the Atonement and its role in our life after death.  I am humbled to speak on Easter about the glorious resurrection and the blessings we receive in the gift of immortality from our Savior Jesus Christ.  My thoughts have been drawn to how blessed we are to have the gospel in our lives to give us comfort in times of grief when losing a loved one.  As those of you who lived in the 18th ward years ago know, I lost both my parents who were members here.  First my dad in 1984 and then my mom in 1997.  I have often spoken in meetings of my testimony of the resurrection and how I know I will see my parents again.

During the past 10 years I have played violin and for a time managed a local community symphony.  One of my favorite performances was at Christmas time as we prepared for and performed Handel's Messiah.  This sacred piece was first performed in April of 1742, it wasn't until the 19th century that it became accepted as a Christmas piece.  Originally, and more truthfully, it is a celebration of Easter. 

Dr. Mark D. Roberts, a pastor and director at Fuller Seminary wrote an analysis on Handel's Messiah.  He said, [quote] "A performance of Handel’s Messiah lasts somewhere around 137 minutes, The birth of Jesus (“For unto us a child is born”) comes just about 25% into the performance. The resurrection … occurs just before the 60% point, which leaves 40% of the entire Messiah to focus on the fact and the implications of the resurrection. A substantial portion of this 40% concerns the resurrection, not of Jesus, but of those who believe in him." [end quote] (Handel’s Messiah, An Unexpected Easter Masterpiece, Dr. Mark D. Roberts)

The lyrics for Handel's Messiah, was compiled by Charles Jennens, a musician/poet who had worked with Handel previously.  The text, he compiled, was written from the scriptures and relies heavily on prophetic declarations of Christ found in the Old Testament and testimony of saints in the New Testament. 

We are all familiar with the Christmas portions in Handel's Messiah, I would like to discuss the scriptures used in this music that celebrates Christ's power to save us from the grave and to redeem us from sin.

During the performance a soloist sings the words of Job, "I know that my Redeemer liveth, and that He shall stand at the latter day upon the earth. And though worms destroy this body, yet in my flesh shall I see God". (Job 19:25–26)

Later another soloist triumphantly sings the words of Paul, "The trumpet shall sound, and the dead shall be raised incorruptible, and we shall be changed. For this corruptible must put on incorruption; and this mortal must put on immortality."  (I Corinthians 15:52–53)

As I pondered on these words and my testimony of a literal resurrection I reread one of my favorite talks by Elder Neal A. Maxwell regarding the Atonement of Jesus.  He said, "Now, my brothers and sisters, let not Jesus’ redemption for us stop at the immortalizing dimension of the Atonement, “the loosing of the bands of death” (Alma 11:41). Let us grasp the proffered gift of eternal life!  …His beckoning command is to become “even as I am” (3 Ne. 27:27). The spiritually settled accept that invitation, and “through the atonement of Christ,” they become and overcome! (see Mosiah 3:18, 19)." - (Neal A. Maxwell, "Overcome, Even as I Overcame", April 1987 General Conference)

At this point, I realized that in previous Easters, perhaps I had focused too much on the glorious but physical aspect of the atonement of Jesus Christ.  Yes, I will overcome death but more importantly I can overcome the effects of sin in life.  My gratitude and testimony has been so steeped in my faith in a physical resurrection that I have often glossed over the more important  aspect of the promises of eternal life that are offered me.

Because of the physical act of being risen from the dead and because Christ  showed himself to many, because we have testimony of Christ's physical appearance to the Nephites, because Joseph Smith, in our day, saw the resurrected Savior and especially because I have gained a personal witness that He lives and has overcome death, I can have faith in the redeeming aspect of the atonement to be able to wash my sins away and make me clean.  I think, in part,  God wanted to give us mortals a physical witness to reassure us that it is possible to be spiritually born again.  Seeing we have witnesses to Christ's literal resurrection, we can have faith in his promises to redeem us spiritually as well.

In The Messiah, a soloist sings the prophetic words of Isaiah as if Christ had already wrought the atonement, "He was despised and rejected of men, a man of sorrows, and acquainted with grief". (Isaiah 53:3)  "Surely He hath borne our griefs, and carried our sorrows. He was wounded for our transgressions, He was bruised for our iniquities, the chastisement of our peace was upon Him." (Isaiah 53:4–5 25) "And with His stripes we are healed." (Isaiah 53:5)

A soloist sings from Psalms "Thy rebuke hath broken His heart; He is full of heaviness; He looked for some to have pity on Him, but there was no man, neither found He any to comfort Him."  (Psalms 69:20) and from Lamentations, "Behold, and see if there be any sorrow like unto His sorrow." (Lamentations 1:12)  Christ allowed himself to suffer more than any man could suffer so that he would know how to succor and minister to us.  We can in our most desperate and lonely hour turn to Him knowing that He knows and fully understands us and what we are experiencing.  Then we can with faith, ask for forgiveness and seek His loving embrace and we will find it.  

The closing piece in The Messiah is taken from the book of Revelations and the chorus sings "Worthy is the Lamb that was slain, and hath redeemed us to God by His blood, to receive power, and riches, and wisdom, and strength, and honor, and glory, and blessing. Blessing and honor, glory and power, be unto Him that sitteth upon the throne, and unto the Lamb, for ever and ever." (Revelation 5:12-14)

"Therefore, dearly beloved brethren [and sisters], let us cheerfully do all things that lie in our power; and then may we stand still, with the utmost assurance, to see the salvation of God, and for his arm to be revealed." (D&C 123:17)

It is my Testimony that Christ lives.  He lived for us, and died for us and through Him we can overcome and become like Him


Saturday, December 17, 2016

Celebrating the Plan



Celebrating the Plan

In my talk, I would like to share some of the reasons that Christmas is special to me.  Christmas celebrates the coming of Christ, but how often do we ponder on WHY this should be a joyful season?  How often do we ponder on Why Christ came, and especially his role in the great plan?

Bishop Peterson requested that I speak a bit about the coming of Jesus in relation to the plan of salvation.  As I studied and thought about this, it occurred to me, in the scriptures and in our teaching we refer to this plan as: The Plan of Salvation, The Plan of Redemption or The Plan of Happiness.  As I pondered on the meaning of these phrases I reflected on experiences in my own life that make me grateful for the kindness of our Father in Heaven to design a plan to redeem us and the generosity of His son to atone for each of us.

I lost my parents when I was in high school.  I still remember how I felt the spirit bearing witness to me of the things that I was taught as I grew up.  I knew that death was not the end.  I knew I would see them again.  The scriptures have continually been a blessing to me as they bring me peace during the sorrows I encounter.

Nephi in speaking to his people said:
4 For I know that ye have searched much, many of you, to know of things to come; wherefore I know that ye know that our flesh must waste away and die; nevertheless, in our bodies we shall see God.
6 For as death hath passed upon all men, to fulfil the merciful plan of the great Creator, there must needs be a power of resurrection,
7 Wherefore, it must needs be an infinite atonement--save it should be an infinite atonement this corruption could not put on incorruption.
10 O how great the goodness of our God, who prepareth a way for our escape from the grasp of this awful monster; yea, that monster, death and hell…
12… wherefore, death and hell must deliver up their dead, and hell must deliver up its captive spirits, and the grave must deliver up its captive bodies, and the bodies and the spirits of men will be restored one to the other; and it is by the power of the resurrection of the Holy One of Israel. (2 Nephi 9)

Paul in writing to the Corinthians praised the Savior with the words:
55 O death, where is thy sting? O grave, where is thy victory?
57     But thanks be to God, which giveth us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.
(1 Corinthians 1)

The gift of salvation from temporal death is only one of the aspects of the plan to bring us joy as we ponder on the great meanings of Christmas.  We can also experience joy as we understand that through Christ we overcome the sins that separate us spiritually from God.  Paul to the Romans said “For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God.  Being justified freely by his grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus. (Romans 3:23)  King Benjamin taught us:
19 For the natural man is an enemy to God, and has been from the fall of Adam, and will be, forever and ever, unless he yields to the enticings of the Holy Spirit, and putteth of the natural man and becometh a saint through the atonement of Christ the Lord and becometh as a child, submissive, meek, humble, patient, full of love, willing to submit to all things which the Lord seeth fit to inflict upon him, even as a child doth submit to his father. (Mosiah 3:19)

As we contemplate on these reasons to be joyful and celebrate the life and mission of Christ this season, I hope that they lead us to the desire of sharing it with others.  The prophet Jacob having great concern for his people wrote:
5 For because of faith and great anxiety, it truly had been made manifest unto us concerning our people, what things should happen unto them.
6 And we also had many revelations, and the spirit of much prophecy; wherefore, we knew of Christ and his kingdom, which should come.
7 Wherefore we labored diligently among our people, that we might persuade them to come unto Christ, and partake of the goodness of God, that they might enter into his rest,
(Jacob 1:5-7)

The ANXIETY that Jacob wrote about is not the kind that gives us stress or anguish, if you listen to the last verse, their anxiousness led them to labor diligently to bring people to Christ and partake of God's goodness and enter into His rest.  Elder Bednar spoke of this scripture and taught "Anxiety in this verse means anxious regarding concern."  This can be a lesson to us, that our faith and concern for others can lead us to laboring diligently for the benefit of others. 

This Christmas season many of you have joined others in accepting the church's challenge to #Lighttheworld by doing the things that Christ did.  These acts of service bring peace and Joy to others and strengthen our own testimonies and love of the Savior.

In this year's First Presidency Devotional, Elder Craig C. Christensen said, "Christmas is not only a celebration of how Jesus came into the world but also of knowing who He is—our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ—and of why He came."  He continues,
"By age 12, His expressed desire was to “be about [His] Father’s business.” That business was to manifest to the world the Father’s “great and wonderful love” for His children.
“For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, … that the world through him might be saved.”
His Father’s business was to “[go] about doing good.” It was a work of compassion—“healing the sick, raising the dead, causing the lame to walk, the blind to receive their sight, and the deaf to hear.”
His Father’s business was to open the eyes of our faith, to arouse our spiritual faculties, and to heal our pain, our pride, our sickness, and our sins. It was to “succor [us in our] infirmities.” And to accomplish this, Jesus willingly suffered pain, rejection, afflictions, and temptations of every kind.
His Father’s business was to help us fulfill our purpose on earth—to “fit us for heaven,” that we might “live with [Him] there.” In other words, His Father’s business was—and is—“to bring to pass the immortality and eternal life of man.”

The advent and atonement of the Savior and all the acts between He was doing His father's business.  When the prophet Nephi was blessed to see the birth of Jesus in vision, the angel asked him, "knowest thou the meaning of the tree which thy father saw?"  At this point I think some things became even more clear to Nephi and he answered, "Yea, it is the love of God, which sheddeth itself abroad in the hearts of the children of men; wherefore, it is the most desirable above all things."

Christ came to bring the love of God to the children of men…to teach each of us the way to happiness.  Alma, desiring to preach the gospel more effectively pleaded,
1 O that I were an angel, and could have the wish of mine heart, that I might go forth and speak with the trump of God, with a voice to shake the earth, and cry repentance unto every people!
2 Yea, I would declare unto every soul, as with the voice of thunder, repentance and the plan of redemption, that they should repent and come unto our God, that there might not be more sorrow upon all the face of the earth. (Alma 29)

Christ not only came to redeem us from death and hell, but to teach us a better way to live.  He taught us through His example of being about His father's business that we too can have compassion for others and lighten their load.  After being resurrected and appearing to His disciples, Jesus asked Peter in a very compelling manor to "feed my sheep". That request was not intended for only Peter, it was to be handed down and asked of every Christian. We must all feed His sheep, minister to those around us, show love to the unloved, to be more like Him. 

I pray that each of us may reflect on the blessings of the plan of happiness, that has been freely and willingly offered to us through the great and eternal sacrifice of the Only Begotten, our very own brother, Jesus Christ.  May we share those blessings through our acts of love and compassion to those around us. 

Sunday, August 23, 2015

Nate's multi-grain bread recipe

I have been experimenting with multi-grain whole wheat bread recipes in my bread maker.  I think I have come up with one that is pretty darn good.  I used other whole wheat bread recipes as a start but then reduced flour to incorporate the grains I added in.

1 1/4 cups warm water
2 tbsp melted butter
1/4 cup honey
1/4 cup Honeyville Grain 9 grain mix
1/4 cup oat bran
1/4 cup wheat germ
1 tbsp chia seeds
1 tsp salt
1 cup whole wheat flour
1 cup white flour
2 tsp active dry yeast

Put ingredients in bread machine in order above.  Use whole wheat rapid 1 1/2lb loaf setting.


Monday, January 26, 2015

Jeppson Obituraries

Wow, I can't believe it has been over a year since my last post.  I have a couple images of obituaries I wanted to put up here.  These are for my dad's foster parents (Uncle and Aunt).  They died in the 1940s.  Albert Jeppson and Mary Adeline Thompson Jeppson.



Saturday, January 11, 2014

Homemade Elk Sausage

Joanie got me a meat grinder and sausage stuffer attachment for my Kitchen Aid for Christmas this year.  I was very excited to try my hand at sausage making.  I picked up some seasoning from a local store for Kielbasa and was excited to try it out.

I bought some pork fat from a friend who is a butcher.  He gave me some good advice about having the meat partially frozen when grinding.  He also suggested seasoning the meat prior to each grind.  Good suggestion, I was wondering how to get the meat evenly seasoned.

Cubed Elk

Cubed pork fat with the elk

Kielbasa seasoning

First grind

Second grind

Comparison, second grind on the left, first grind on the right

Soaked Hog Casings

Time to stuff!

First sausage coming off
 
Nick Helping out

Finished sausages

One on the smoker
I tied string thinking I would hang them in the smoker but, my smoker was too small

Bagged up and ready for the freezer.

Monday, August 05, 2013

Camping and the Summer of 2013

July came and went quicker than probably any month so far this year.  We didn't get up to our camping property until early July.  I spent some time with Nick and one of his friends and later with Joan, Gabby and one of her friends.  We saw some animals and it was still fairly green.  It is pretty when a little rain comes through...if you have shelter that is.

















 

 









We even got a flat tire.  It took me a while to find that the tool to use to lower the spair and raise the jack



I spent 4 days at Scout camp with Nick.  That was a lot of fun.  We did the standard scout stuff and enjoyed being outdoors.  Nick and I enjoyed cooking bread on sticks over the campfire.

After Scout camp, I went with the Priests to our high adventure...well, it wasn't such an high adventure as it was a 3 day golf/Bear Lake/Tabernacles of Southern Idaho & Northern Utah trip.  We had a good time and it was great to get to know the boys better.

I've been trying to get up to Sourdough on weekends that we don't have plans.  We're trying to make new tent areas and develop the fire pit areas better.  I also downloaded pictures from my trail cam to see what animals stop by for a visit.




 I've learned to be careful not to put the trail cam where the branches move when there is a breeze...you end up with a bunch of pictures of nothing but the breeze blowing.