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...

I love Moroni's strategy.  With God on his side, he seems almost unstoppable. So Ammoron decides to be a jerk about the letter-sending, and what-not, so Moroni's like, "Dude...  You did NOT just say that!  A'ight, then, we'll see who gets to keep prisoners around here!!" Let's see what could have gone wrong with this st...

Well... I finally did it.  I've been kind of anxious about the whole "modifying my car" because I've never done it before, and my car is still under warranty.  I have no idea what this might mean for the warranty, but after hearing / feeling the difference, I don't regret it one bit.  I love it! Just two modifications fo...

So, we're starting 3rd Nephi.  This should prove to be interesting. The first thing I noticed was, again, how quickly (and stupidly) people make up excuses for that which is obviously true. I imagine that living during the time all these miracle were happening (and increasing), would be such a gift.  The signs and miracles profesied b...

Where do I even begin with this chapter? I remember reading it and understanding it for the first time during my mission.  It was really cool realizing that all of this stuff in this chapter is written about in history books!  It talks about Christopher Columbus discovering America, the Revolutionary War, the Bible, the coming of the Bo...

 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",...

Interesting that the council invites the entire Nephite people in the land of Nephi to join in the discussion about how they should free themselves.  I wonder why they make a point to note that. Also, it's very cool that Mosiah received them with joy, although I can't find any reason that they should have done otherwise. This seems like a ...

Man...  I've been having mixed emotions about the oncoming trip to California for a number of reasons.  I mean, this trip really has been putting both me and my wife through the ringer.  First, I got a new job, and am being quite challenged by my new tasks there.  Taking time off to go on a vacation right now isn't the best idea...

One sore spot of AdvancedBudgetStudios was the very, very cheap preamps we've been using.   Well, after much searching, digging, late nights, and crawling through the Internet on my hands and knees, I came upon the deal of a lifetime.  Yup..  I found a brand-spankin' new "Focusrite Octopre Platinum" which we will be ad...

Amazing...  It's almost unbelievable that in the space of less than 13 years, a whole nation can go from being wicked, to almost dying of hunger, to becoming incredibly righteous and prosperous, and then coming back to being so wicked that the combined armies of the Nephites and Lamanites can't defeat the wicked part of the people. I've bee...

I just got done playing some sweet jazz for a client, and with the usual rock 'n' roll requests coming in, this was a great change of pace. I'm always intrigued at the different nuances that exist between styles of music as it pertains to rhythm and percussion.  Rock and roll pounds out some great 4/4 along the occasional 3/4 timing, with so...

Ya know...  I really liked this talk.  There were points in it where I found his words coming through my mind's eye of the past. While growing up, I was probably on the extreme of what Elder Zwick was trying to convey.  Instead of being tempted to go along with the crowd, I thought the crowd was stupid, and I didn't need them. ...

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...

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...

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...

 I think these chapters are too short.  Interesting to note that the scripture says that the elder or priest would "kneel down with the church", yet the congregation doesn't kneel down today. Also interesting to note that the sacrament prayer is one of very few prayers which have to be said verbatim, and hasn't changed at all ...

I'm not in the mood to write much, but since it's a goal, I'll keep it. One thing I noticed and had a question about was why Nephi, Sariah, and Sam didn't know where to go in Lehi's dream.  Verse 14 lays it out quite plainly. The first thing that came to mind was Lehi was the leader of the family.  He was the director and it was his d...

Reading these two chapters didn't leave me with much spiritual insight, as I didn't understand much of it. That said, I did, however, really feel the Spirit while reading them.  I yearned to know what the words meant.  I wanted to study them more....  Oddly enough,  I find myself wanting to study them more, yet kind of scared ...

Wow....  Ya know those news stories about that sickness being spread by people in swimming pools this summer?  Well... I've got one thing to say about em': BELIEVE THEM.  THEY'RE TRUE. I'm just getting over a sickness that pretty much was a worst case scenario of what they explain as a parasite called "cryptosporidium", w...

I wasn't in the best of moods while reading this, this morning, but I must say that it helped me gain a bit of focus for the job hunt this morning. The principle that jumped out at me this time around was that of humility.  Going through the pain that is sometimes required to bring about humility just might be the thing that saves your soul....

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...