First thing I noticed in this chapter is verse 1.  He tells his children that Christ will show himself unto them.  How is this possible if this was written approximately 550 years before Christ would come?  Very interesting...  I'll have to research that. Verse 7 pops out at me like a bolt of lightning.  I've been lookin...

It feels quite refreshing to be able to understand more than just a couple of verses again.  As I was reading tonight, I realized how much could be written about this chapter.  It's quite full of good doctrine. Here's what I noticed tonight: From verse 1 until 6, Nephi seems to be trying to explain the "hard to understand" n...

I find it interesting how Satan is described throughout scripture. In this chapter, through verses 13 - 20, Satan is seemingly exposed as the weak fraudster he really is.  Verse 16 is quite potent, written from the standpoint of people who were tempted by him, when shown his actual person, are amazed at the frailness of Satan.  They say...

All I gotta say about this chapter is man, I do not want to be on the wrong side of things when the 2nd coming of Christ is ushered in. Verses like 16 and 18 really hit home on what we're in for. I can only assume the destruction of Babylon can be typed as a metaphor for what is coming when Christ comes again....

Surprisingly... I'm not sure if it's because of my attitude or what, but I believe I got a bit more out of this chapter than I have for the rest of the Isaiah stuff. I'm not 100% sure what the branch is that comes out of the root of Jesse, but I've been told that is refers to the prophet Joseph Smith (D&C 113). I also believe that when it s...

I just got done reading this article in which Dan Glickman states some figures on how the Hollywood box office did in 2007. With all of the cracking down and spazmic hooplah the RIAA / MPAA has been spewing, you'd think the figures quoted in this article would be something akin to "worst year ever, due to piracy!" or "box office s...

To tell you the truth, I didn't get much out of the scriptures tonight.  There was a verse from which I thought I could derive meaning. Verse 15. The ax depends on him that wields it for its strength.  Alone, it is nothing but wood and metal.  Used by a person, it can become a powerful tool.  Same thing with a saw. I took ...

"...and his hand is stretched out still." I love that phrase.  To me, it's just another way of saying, "I will be here for you, no matter what you do or where you go.  I will always be here for you." What a comfort that is, knowing there will always be someone there for you.  I know it is for me, and I've felt...

I am so exausted...I never realized how much going to college and being a mother could take all the energy out of you. I am hoping I made the right choice going back to school, it takes all of my being to get up in the morning and drive to school. I am so thankful for the weekends for the days off lol. Tomorrow I have a babyshower to host and then ...

I've been debating writing this down for quite some time now, but I think it's time now to write it. What I am penning is a more detailed account of what happened this day during my mission. It was April of 1996, two months before I would return home from my 2-year service as a missionary for our Lord Jesus Christ. I was serving in a leade...

Okay...  I know it's a little bit late, but I thought I needed to write about my B-day anyway.  It was the 14th, and evidently, the 16th, too. So, the 14th began with a great time eating lots of great food.  Pancakes for breakfast, my best friend Scott took me to my all-time favorite Thai restaurant and we got some insanely delicio...

While my wife and I were watching The Office tonight, we got wind of President Obama being on The Tonight Show with Jay Leno, so we decided to stay up to watch it. Well, I just got done watching it, and before I forget, I have to write down some initial thoughts. To begin, I am by absolutely no means whatsoever any source of any credible politi...

Well... I figured I'd better write about this because I didn't have the sense to take any video of the actual party. I recorded myself going TO the party, but nothing more.  Crud. It was a good LAN party, too.  We played last Friday and Saturday.  We had the usuals there, Me, Shane and Shaun, but there were two people who never had...

At Advanced Budget Studios, we certainly can take an idea and create a masterpiece from nothing, but what if you've already got a great recording, but you just need that certain something to make it really stand out?  In the case of the G and M Project, they already a great recording of their song, Heartbreaker, but it wasn't quite where they ...

I read Mosiah 18 yesterday and found that due to the mindset I'm having now of an overall perspective, it was hard to get into all the details of what Alma was saying.  This is a great chapter for new members, or people who are trying to understand baptism. One question I have always had with this scripture is, "Where did Alma get the ...

From the first memories I have, my life has been lived through rhythm.  There has always been an inherent "groove" of my life.  From walking down the sidewalk after school when I was in Jr. High, pacing the rhythm of the lines in the cement, and timing my steps accordingly, keeping the "1,2,3,4" clock in my head going ...

Why is it that when I try to make friends my Ex has to come in and mess things up? Theres this girl, she's got NO friends at church and from what I hear she ain't got none at school either. I wanted to be her friend, to give her some one so she end up like me, alone. She's a really great girl, but she don't just get it, I can't tell her about my ex...

This chapter is full of doctrinal nuggets. Some things I noticed this time around which I haven't noticed before are the following: Verses 6-8 are primarily about the importance of revelation.  We are told this importance is denounced by our time's people in 2nd Nephi 28:5-6.  I had never made that connection before. Interes...

I upgraded all of my boxen yesterday, including my main server (which now has successfully become my slowest machine).  As you probably know, I run gentoo on everything. When I built my mythtv-based home-theater in my basement about 2 years ago, I spent about 2 months configuring my server to handle everything I needed it to.  I didn't d...

I've been needing to write a bit more about what's going on in my life lately, so... I'll give it a try this evening. First, you'll notice by the video above that yesterday morning a sad event occurred. No, my cat didn't die. No, my computer didn't fry. My mohawk went bye-bye. Yup.  I woke up yesterday morning and just couldn't ...

Yesterday at church, I had a couple of thoughts which I neglected to write down.  I think I'll write them down now. Something I might have written down in my previous scripture studies is my question as to why Lehi's family didn't think about getting the plates of brass / Ishmael's family before they left for the wilderness?  I would th...

Man... I'm kicking myself right now for not taking a photo of this amazing musician, but I was way too interested in the music I was hearing to worry about silly cameras. Taylor Miller came in for a visit, and recorded 3 original songs tonight.  They have yet some proper embellishment to receive, but the tracks we got tonight were primo.&nbs...

I've only got 5 minutes to write, but I've simply got to say something about our baby Samuel... With Collin and Luci, I didn't feel a real connection until the actual birth.  Well..  Walking around today in the house, I looked at Sarah's big belly, and I felt a warm feeling in my chest which can only be described as a connection with t...

 So...  Sometimes I feel like I write things here that could get me into trouble, but I figure, if this is what I really think, and I'm sincere about it, then right or wrong, the truth will eventually come out.  Many times, I've thought one thing, and then upon further studying and prayer, have found out I was wrong ... and I'm okay ...

 What a horrible end to this story.  Poor Coriantumr.  Saw his situation with vivid clarity after it was too late, and rather than give up his life, he watched (which what must have been a horror show) everything Ether had told him come to life:  The complete destruction of his people, leaving him alone.  I can't imagine th...

 Not sure why I'm writing about this now, because I usually just finish the thing and then announce it at the same time as I share it. I guess this song is a complete deviation from anything I've done in the past.  Heh... Just now I'm realizing that I don't even have a name for this song yet.  I could call it "My Friend",...

So Jeff Petersen is a guy with whom I've been friends for years.  I hadn't seen him in probably as long.  We went to BYU together, were roommates, and had summer jobs in California together.  We got along very well... But then we each got married, he moved to Missouri, and that was that...    ...until two days ago. ...

Amazing.  A couple of chapters ago, I was commenting on the sad state which Nephi found himself in, and the amazing faith he must have had to remain in a state of faithfulness to God, when everyone around him was wicked. I guess that's the way it goes.  God tries us to our breaking point, careful not to give us trials beyond our capabil...

I'm always pleased and grateful that the Spirit comes so quickly when I read the Book of Mormon.  Sometimes I forget how much I love how the Spirit of God makes me feel and think and act. Anyway...  Great chapter this was.... Of all of the stories in the Book of Mormon, I think I like the one of the 2000 Stripling Warriors the best.&n...

Ya know, I sure am glad that Nephi wrote verse 22 of this chapter.  In all of scripture, this is the only chapter which uses the word "flaxen" to describe the way Satan tempts us. Flax is a fiber from a plant which is used to make linen.  Linen isn't known for its strength. Satan indeed does "lead us" with very ent...