how do you fit all your thoughts in a blog post?

It has been awhile since I've posted. I have a lot on my mind and in my heart. I have a very close friend in a hospital flirting with death, I have another friend who just got remarried, I still have a wonderful job, a beautiful wife, beautiful children, and we are all healthy. I have a neighbor who has been out of work and in a wheelchair due to a work accident. Life has been very fair to me, and I've been blessed greatly. I see close friends and others around me that may cause me to think, "life isn't fair." Why them and not me? I don't think this is a very valuable question. One of more value would be "What am I doing to bless their lives and ease their burdens?" Especially this time of year when we celebrate the birth and life of Christ, I think this question and answer is very meaningful:

36 Master, which is the great commandment in the law?

37 Jesus said unto him, Thou shalt ^alove the Lord thy God with all thy ^bheart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy ^cmind.

38 This is the first and great ^acommandment.

39 And the second is like unto it, Thou shalt ^alove thy neighbour as thyself.

So, during this Christmas season what gift are you giving to Christ?

Happy Thanksgiving

I'm thankful for my wife and kids, for a my parents, siblings, in-laws, for my friends. I'm thankful for a loving God who knows who I am and is aware of me, and loves me.

I'm thankful for a Savior who enabled all of us as children of God to return and live again. I'm thankful for temples and the opportunity that is provides for us to be connected as families. I'm thankful for the Book of Mormon, I'm thankful for prayer, and the opportunity that I have to talk with God.

I'm thankful for a warm home and and good job. I'm thankful for my life!

"Look at my picture, isn't it ugly?"

Do you remember as a kid, drawing or coloring a picture that you were so proud of, then you would turn to a brother or sister, cousin or friend and say, "Look at my picture, isn't it ugly?" just to get some praise. I liked this message by President Dieter F. Uchtdorf on creativity.

How are you waiting for the Lord?

Last night our family home evening lesson was on the second coming of the the Lord. In 2 Nephi 6:13 it reads:

13 Wherefore, they that fight against Zion and the covenant people of the Lord shall lick up the dust of their feet; and the people of the Lord shall not be ^aashamed. For the people of the Lord are they who ^bwait for him; for they still wait for the coming of the Messiah.

What does it mean to wait for him? My favorite scripture is found in Isaiah 40:31. It says:

31 But they that ^await upon the Lord shall ^brenew their ^cstrength; they shall mount up with wings as ^deagles; they shall ^erun, and not be weary; and they shall walk, and not faint.

Notice all the action words. To wait for the Lord is not to sit and wait for Him to come. But it is to "wait upon." As we serve Him, our strength will be renewed and we shall run and not be weary, walk and not faint. Our family has been burdened down with the swine flu over the past few weeks, and when you're sick, you really long for that re-newness of strength. Spiritually speaking, in my life when I've not longed for that strength, I needed to get on my knees and pray for it. The Lord has never let me down.

Diligence brings joy

I was at BYU-Idaho last week, and while I was waiting for a co-worker to finish up an interview I noticed a quote in the Kimball building that pertained to diligence that I liked. It was a quote from the prophet Spencer W. Kimball. It said: "Diligence brings joy. We are not here for the fun of it. We are here for the joy of it, and we want to go forward and do our work as we should do it."

Since I've had this goal of learning how to apply more diligence in my life, I've been blessed to come across quotes, talks, and scriptures that talk about diligence. Just this morning in my my study I came across this scripture in Helaman. Samuel is talking about the Lamanites that were converted to the Lord, as he was preaching repentance to the Nephites. This is Helaman 15:6:

6 Yea, I say unto you, that the more part of them are doing this, and they are striving with aunwearied diligence that they may bring the remainder of their brethren to the knowledge of the truth; therefore there are many who do add to their numbers daily.

We truly are here on earth for the "joy of it". So let's get to work, for this is what truly brings joy into our life; serving others.

I know my Redeemer lives.

Great message. I stayed up and watched a good flick called "Fireproof" last night. I'd recommend this to anyone. It takes you through a marriage that was almost lost, but saved. It talks of the Saviors role, and how by understanding what he did, enables us to understand truly what love is. I know that my Savior and Redeemer died and lives for me.

Who discovered that the earth moves around the sun?

Nicolaus Copernicus is credited with heliocentric cosmology. Which places the sun at the center of the our solar system, with the planets rotating around it. He published a book on this in 1543.

Nephi in the Book of Mormon in Heleman chapter 12:15 states:

15 And thus, according to his word the ^aearth goeth back, and it appeareth unto man that the ^bsun standeth still; yea, and behold, this is so; for surely it is the earth that moveth and not the sun.

This was about 7 B.C.

Are you hungry and thirsty?

I remember in my talk I gave just before I left on a 2 year LDS mission. I wished that I could feel the Spirit the way I felt at that moment always. In my scripture study this morning I read in 3 Nephi 12:6 which reads:

6 And blessed are all they who do hunger and thirst after righteousness for they shall be filled with the Holy Ghost.

I've had a great past few days. I've been up in Idaho on a business trip. While on my trip, I've focused on righteousness, and I've felt the Holy Ghost very strongly. I took some family names through the Idaho Falls temple while up here. It was a very choice experience. I've been coming up to Idaho for work for the past 3 years, and this is the first time that I've been to the temple up here. I testify that this scripture is true. As I've hungered and thirsted after righteousness, I've felt the Holy Ghost.

Choose This Day

Great motivating message!

My wife's new Hot Wheels!

We had a softball game on Stacie's birthday. She's had a pulled quad muscle. She reinjured it at our game. After the game we went to Winegers to do some shopping. I got her the keys to this fancy cart.

Boston

I had the privilege of visiting Boston for a technical conference. My favorite thing was going to a Red Sox game. The Red Sox beat the Angels in the bottom of the 9th. It was awesome! The atmosphere was way cool. I was converted a Boston Red Sox fan. Here are some pictures from that trip.

Diligence to do His will

In Helaman 10:4-7 it reads:

4 aBlessed art thou, Nephi, for those things which thou hast done; for I have beheld how thou hast with bunwearyingness declared the word, which I have given unto thee, unto this people. And thou hast not feared them, and hast not sought thine cown life, but hast sought my dwill, and to keep my commandments.
5 And now, because thou hast done this with such unwearyingness, behold, I will bless thee forever; and I will make thee mighty in word and in deed, in faith and in works; yea, even that aall things shall be bdone unto thee according to thy cword, for thou shalt dnot ask that which is contrary to my will.
6 Behold, thou art Nephi, and I am God. Behold, I declare it unto thee in the presence of mine angels, that ye shall have power over this people, and shall smite the earth with afamine, and with pestilence, and destruction, according to the wickedness of this people.
7 Behold, I give unto you apower, that whatsoever ye shall bseal on earth shall be sealed in heaven; and whatsoever ye shall loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven; and thus shall ye have power among this people.

I've been studying diligence and trying to have more of it in my life. In my study today, I came across this scripture. Life seems to get so busy, and it is easy to get caught up in everything. I think it is awesome how Nephi was so focused on the will of the Lord. He worked with "such unwearyingness." Look at the blessings Nephi receives because of his diligence in serving the Lord and doing His will. These are blessings that are in store for us as we do the same. I think a great question to ask ourselves frequently is: Is this the Lord's will?

Diligence

What is diligence? It is one of Christ's attributes. "Diligence is steady, consistent, earnest, and energetic effort in doing the Lord's work." Preach my Gospel I've wondered at times how diligent I've been with the simple things that strengthen my knowledge and my testimony in the Savior and my Heavenly Father. How diligent am I in saying sincere prayers, studying my scriptures, having family prayer, family scripture study, and family home evening? It seems like I do well for a while, then there are times that I slip. I think some key things in the definition of diligence are the words, steady, consistent, earnest and energetic. If you apply those words to your personal prayers, family prayers and personal and family scripture study, how diligent are you? I know I can be more steady and consistent. I can be more earnest and energetic. I believe by praying for the desire to have this attribute and doing these things my life and others around me will grow closer to God.

Be Positive.

So, I just need to comment on my Friday night, in a tent with my girls. I gave Linsey the warmest sleeping bag. She chose to sleep by Ashley on the ground and not on the air mattress. First thing in the night, Alissa keeps rolling out of her sleeping bag. So I end up by her, keeping her sleeping bag and blanket on her to keep her warm. Now I'm getting all comfortable and ready to go to sleep. I then hear Linsey say, "Dad, this isn't the warmest sleeping bag, it is the coldest sleeping bag in the world!" I told here to come lay by me. She gets into my sleeping bag. Now we are squished. Linsey says, "I'm squished, I'm hot.... Dad, I've got to go the bathroom, my stomach hurts, I think I'm going to throw up." At this point, I'm not sure what time it is in the middle of the night, and it is cold. We had all the girls use the bathroom before bed so this would not happen. Ashley then wakes up and says, "Dad, I've gotta go to the bathroom." So, I get up with Linsey and Ashley and we leave the tent in the middle of the night and head to use the bathroom. As we walk to the bathroom, Ashley comments on the stars. They were magnificent. It was a memory with my girls I'll never forget. Look for the positive - there is always one in everything.

Change :)

Well, today I start my new commute down to Riverton. It will double my commute time. I getting up a lot earlier to start my day off, so I can avoid traffic. Change is always refreshing to me. We'll see how this goes. We went camping up to Mirror Lake this past weekend, and Ashley turned 9. I'll have to post some pictures when I get time this week.

A simple prayer

Here is how Alissa's prayer went last night...

Heavenly Father
please bless mommy's foot to get better
please bless Ashley and Linsey not to fight
Help me get married in the temple.
In the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.

Alissa just turned 4. It is amazing how powerful, simple things like this prayer can be learned and applied at such a young age. We can learn so much from children. This prayer was sincere, I felt it as I knelt with her.

What one Righteous man can do.

Alma 46:12-24

12 And it came to pass that he rent his coat; and he took a piece thereof, and wrote upon it—aIn memory of our God, our religion, and freedom, and our peace, our wives, and our children—and he fastened it upon the end of a pole.
13 And he fastened on his head-plate, and his abreastplate, and his shields, and girded on his armor about his loins; and he took the pole, which had on the end thereof his rent coat, (and he called it the btitle of liberty) and he cbowed himself to the earth, and he prayed mightily unto his God for the blessings of liberty to rest upon his brethren, so long as there should a band of dChristians remain to possess the land—
14 For thus were all the true believers of Christ, who belonged to the church of God, called by those who did not belong to the church.
15 And those who did belong to the church were afaithful; yea, all those who were true believers in Christ btook upon them, gladly, the name of Christ, or cChristians as they were called, because of their belief in Christ who should come.
16 And therefore, at this time, Moroni prayed that the cause of the Christians, and the afreedom of the land might be favored.
17 And it came to pass that when he had poured out his soul to God, he named all the land which was asouth of the land bDesolation, yea, and in fine, all the land, both on the cnorth and on the south—A chosen land, and the land of dliberty.
18 And he said: Surely God shall not asuffer that we, who are despised because we take upon us the name of Christ, shall be trodden down and destroyed, until we bring it upon us by our own btransgressions.
19 And when Moroni had said these words, he went forth among the people, waving the arent part of his garment in the air, that all might see the writing which he had written upon the rent part, and crying with a loud voice, saying:
20 Behold, whosoever will maintain this title upon the land, let them come forth in the strength of the Lord, and aenter into a covenant that they will bmaintain their rights, and their religion, that the Lord God may bless them.
21 And it came to pass that when Moroni had proclaimed these words, behold, the people came running atogether with their armor girded about their loins, brending their garments in token, or as a ccovenant, that they would not forsake the Lord their God; or, in other words, if they should transgress the commandments of God, or fall into transgression, and be dashamed to take upon them the name of Christ, the Lord should rend them even as they had rent their garments.
22 Now this was the covenant which they made, and they acast their garments at the feet of Moroni, saying: We bcovenant with our God, that we shall be destroyed, even as our brethren in the land northward, if we shall fall into transgression; yea, he may cast us at the feet of our enemies, even as we have cast our garments at thy feet to be trodden under foot, if we shall fall into transgression.
23 Moroni said unto them: Behold, we are a aremnant of the seed of Jacob; yea, we are a remnant of the seed of bJoseph, whose ccoat was rent by his brethren into many pieces; yea, and now behold, let us remember to keep the commandments of God, or our garments shall be rent by our brethren, and we be cast into prison, or be sold, or be slain.
24 Yea, let us preserve our liberty as a aremnant of Joseph; yea, let us remember the words of Jacob, before his death, for behold, he saw that a bpart of the cremnant of the coat of Joseph was dpreserved and had not decayed. And he said—Even as this remnant of garment of my son hath been preserved, so shall a eremnant of the seed of my son be preserved by the hand of God, and be taken unto himself, while the remainder of the seed of Joseph shall perish, even as the remnant of his garment.

Let us stand for truth and righteousness. Why let the wickedness of the world get you down? Within each of us there is a captain Moroni. Remember, by small things great things come to pass.

The woman of my life

I love my wife! She lifts me and strengthens me! She inspires me to be someone great. I will always be in debt to her. Stacie, you've always given me wings to fly.

Are you committed?

Yesterday I attended a ward conference. I heard the same talk that our Stake President gave at the last ward conference I attended. I'm in the Stake Young Men's, and part of my calling is visiting different wards in the stake. This is the second time I've heard this talk, and the Spirit has pierced my heart and soul both times. In his talk, he told a story of when he played high school basketball. He had been in the game, scored a few points, grabbed a few rebounds. He was feeling good about himself. The coach pulled him out of the game, and asked him, "Are you committed?" The coach instructed him to sit on the bench and watch the game, and see if he was committed. As he watched players dive for the ball, and jump back up into the game, he realized that he was contributing, but not fully committed. He told the coach after some time, that he was ready to go back in the game, and he was ready to be committed. Although, he had scored a few points, and grabbed a few rebounds, he was capable of doing a lot more. Unfortunately for him, the coach told him to sit on the bench for the rest of the game. It was a painful lesson. He then compared the story to life and the gospel. Are we just contributing, or are we committed? I've found in the past few months, I've been contributing, but have I really been committed? The atonement that was made by our Savior allows us to be like Him, to better ourselves, but it requires us to be committed. The nice thing is that we don't have to sit the bench. We can jump into the game now! The only thing that is stopping us is ourselves. I've experienced many times in my life when I've stretched and committed, the Savior stands right by my side and pushes and pulls and lifts and carries me to be the son of God that I've been called to be. I testify this is true for all of Heavenly Father's children. Now let's play the game!

What a great July!

This is me and my brother Mike on the Bear Lake golf course. We love going up to Bear Lake. We did it twice in July. The kids love playing on the beach, and especially going swimming in the pool. I had no stake calling meetings in July. It was really nice. Now it is August, and due to the lack of meetings in July, Aug is always really busy. I read a scripture this morning that is a good reminder on making sure we are not "slothful" and we keep the course. It is in Alma 37:46, where it reads:

46 O my son, do not let us be ^aslothful because of the ^beasiness of the ^cway; for so was it with our fathers; for so was it prepared for them, that if they would ^dlook they might ^elive; even so it is with us. The way is prepared, and if we will look we may live forever.

Even though we are facing tough economic times, it is still easy compared to other times and other places. It was a wake up call for me when I served in Portugal on a 2 year LDS mission. We really don't realize the easiness and all that we are blessed with in the United States. It is important to remember the often quoted scripture that states:

"If ye will keep my commandments ye shall ^cprosper in the land—but if ye keep not his commandments ye shall be cut off from his presence."

great family site! great message!

the family

Constant nourishment to the soul

Just like the body needs constant nourishment, so does the soul. Daily prayer, scripture study, and attendance to church meetings and the temple are all important to keep the soul fit. It always seems like it is easier said than done. Just like my body can feel better or worse depending on if I'm exercising, eating right, and getting enough sleep, my soul feels better or worse depending on my sincerity in daily prayer, my honest scripture study, and my attendance to my church meetings and the temple. Satan is aware of this, and if he can get you to ignore the everyday things needed for the soul, he can slowly pull you out of shape and take away the happiness that all of us deserve. In Alma 32:38, 41 it reads:

38 But if ye ^aneglect the tree, and take no thought for its nourishment, behold it will not get any root; and when the heat of the sun cometh and scorcheth it, because it hath no root it withers away, and ye pluck it up and cast it out.
41 But if ye will nourish the word, yea, nourish the tree as it beginneth to grow, by your faith with great diligence, and with ^apatience, looking forward to the fruit thereof, it shall take root; and behold it shall be a tree ^bspringing up unto everlasting life.

It is easy to get out of the routine of nourishing your soul during summer break with all the vacations and play. Wholesome recreational activities are so important for the family, but you can still do it without neglecting the tree. I know this to be true, because I've seen it in my own life.

ouch!

Had great weekend up at Bear Lake with Stacie and her family. Did some golfing, swimming, beach volleyball, snorkeling, and of course shakes! This year, Stacie's brother brought up a new game. He had rigged up a golf flag on a plank of wood, and tied it down with a weight. It would float on the water. The idea was to hit golf balls into the water. The water is so clear, it is easy to snorkel and retrieve them. Sounds like a fun activity right? Well, it was until, something happened while I was snorkeling for golf balls. Stacie's brother, Clint was going to chip a few balls into the water while me and Justin (Stacie's other brother) would snorkel for them. It is just a simple chip shot, no worries right? The floating flag was about 75 yards out. Clint tees up a ball on the sand. Well, he hit a line drive, and it was heading straight for me. I was standing up with water being about waist high. The ball did one skip on the water, then hit me right in the stomach. You could say, "why didn't you dodge it?" I had flippers on, which made it difficult to move, and it was coming really fast. I didn't want to risk ducking and getting knocked in the head, I didn't want to turn and get hit in the ribs. So I tightened up my stomach and took it. I bent over in extreme pain when it struck me.... yeah that's going to leave a mark. I've got a battle wound to show off now.

Life is good! I'm fishing.

My brother came up from Arizona this past week. We headed up to one of my favorite spots in Uintas to fly fish. Yes, the fish are HUGE! ;) We fished for about 5 hours and got back to the family reunion on time. We pulled in about 60 fish between the three of us.

When your kids take your phone

Ashley has figured out how to use the camera on my phone....

Balboa park, San Diego

Here are some pics from our visit to Balboa park: I'll post more of our vacation later.

Tribute to my best friend

12 years ago I married this amazing woman. She is beautiful, strong willed, intelligent, witty, passionate, kind, spiritual, loving, fun, athletic, a wonderful cook, inspiring and down right gorgeous. We have had 12 wonderful married years together. I've fallen in love with her so deeply, and I cannot even imagine my life without her. I've learned and will continue to learn so much from her. Stacie, I love you.

Lost in La Jolla

San Diego Temple


In Doctrine and Covenants 109:22-23 it reads:

22 And we ask thee, Holy Father, that thy servants may go forth from this house armed with thy power, and that thy ^aname may be upon them, and thy glory be round about them, and thine ^bangels have charge over them;

23 And from this place they may bear exceedingly great and glorious tidings, in truth, unto the ^aends of the earth, that they may know that this is thy work, and that thou hast put forth thy hand, to fulfil that which thou hast spoken by the mouths of the prophets, concerning the last days.

Last week I had the opportunity to take my family to San Diego on vacation. We were there for a week. Thursday night we were at the beach in La Jolla. It was beautiful. We watched the sun set into the ocean. We were staying in a rental house over by Balboa Park. I decided to try to take some back roads that I was not familiar with to find my way back to Interstate 5. Well needless to say... we got lost in the hills of La Jolla. And of course, me being the man, did not need to stop and ask for directions. How hard could it be to find the Interstate? right? We drove around for quite some time, me, my wife, my 4 girls, and my mother-in-law. I think that they were getting inpatient with me. We ended up on top of a hill. It was dark. As I looked over the hill, there was the San Diego Temple all lit up. It was as if it was floating in air. What a beautiful sight. What I desire most in life right now is to see all of my daughters get married in the temple, and I did not even plan this. I didn't plan on taking them to the temple grounds. I missed out on this opportunity. God in a gracious way, allowed us to have this experience.

How many of us our lost in one way or another? Making turns on roads unfamiliar. If we have faith in God, and we are doing our best, I testify it will lead to the house of God.

If you are in Utah right now, and are interested in knowing more about the temples of God, there is an open house for the public, at the new Oquirrh Mountain Temple in Salt Lake. click here for a reservation.

For more information on LDS temples go here.

Linsey and Alissa looking out into the sunset at La Jolla.

A man named Amulek

There is a man that I can't wait to meet when I move from this life to the next. His name is Amulek. Read in the Book of Mormon, Alma chapter 10-15. Concentrate on the traits and the things that Amulek did. He emulated the traits of our Savior. He displayed obedience, a sense of urgency to help others come to our Savior, patience, love and understanding, courage, forgiveness, and giving up family and friends for what was right. I respect and look up to him, and can only hope I can display the same traits in my life. He was a man forordained and lived up to his potential. I wonder if he knows the effects of what he did so long ago, have on God's children today. I'd like to express gratitude for his example and courage.

The food man

24 And see that ye have ^afaith, hope, and charity, and then ye will always abound in good works.

I read a great article in the paper the other day on a man who exemplifies this traits. What have you done with your time lately?

http://www.sltrib.com/news/ci_12407428

Are you a stumbling block?

In Alma 4:8-10 it reads:

8 For they saw and beheld with great sorrow that the people of the church began to be lifted up in the pride of their eyes, and to set their ^ahearts upon riches and upon the vain things of the world, that they began to be scornful, one towards another, and they began to persecute those that did ^bnot believe according to their own will and pleasure.

9 And thus, in this eighth year of the reign of the judges, there began to be great ^acontentions among the people of the church; yea, there were ^benvyings, and ^cstrife, and malice, and persecutions, and pride, even to exceed the pride of those who did not belong to the church of God.

10 And thus ended the eighth year of the reign of the judges; and the wickedness of the church was a great ^astumbling-block to those who did not belong to the church; and thus the church began to fail in its progress.

This was a short time after there was peace with the people of God. In Alma 1:30 it reads:

30 And thus, in their ^aprosperous circumstances, they did not send away any who were ^bnaked, or that were hungry, or that were athirst, or that were sick, or that had not been nourished; and they did not set their hearts upon ^criches; therefore they were ^dliberal to all, both old and young, both bond and free, both male and female, whether out of the church or in the church, having no ^erespect to persons as to those who stood in need.

How quick do we forget? The Lord blesses us in so many ways both spiritual and temporal when we are righteous. How can we sustain what it talks about in Alma 1:30? I believe as soon as we stop serving others and giving to others, the sooner we forget and get caught up in our own blessings both temporal and spiritual. We get stuck in our comfort zones, and we don't share temporally or spiritually with those around us. Then pride does its thing, and we end up like the same people in Alma 4. So, I ask this question. Am I a stumbling block for those around me? Have I got caught up in my own spiritual and temporal blessings? What am I giving back?

Where do you receive your wages?

I read in Alma chapter 3 verses 26-27 this morning stating:

26 And in one year were thousands and tens of thousands of souls sent to the eternal world, that they might reap their ^arewards according to their works, whether they were good or whether they were bad, to reap eternal happiness or eternal misery, according to the spirit which they listed to obey, whether it be a good spirit or a bad one.

27 For every man receiveth ^awages of him whom he listeth to ^bobey, and this according to the words of the spirit of prophecy; therefore let it be according to the truth. And thus endeth the fifth year of the reign of the judges.

So ponder this.... Where do you receive your wages?

Service

In Mosiah chapter 2 in reads:

17 And behold, I tell you these things that ye may learn awisdom; that ye may learn that when ye are in the bservice of your cfellow beings ye are only in the service of your God.

I had the opportunity to serve at the LDS humanitarian center yesterday assembling kits to send down to Mexico to help out with the Swine flu. Here are some pictures and video.

This is a really cool machine that shrink wraps the pallet of boxed items.

Skunked again!

Man, I should just give up fishing. After a week of leadership training, I decided to process all the information by going fishing with my father in law and brother in law up to Strawberry Reservoir. How Stacie let me go? Read my previous post on Miracles j/k. Stacie, has always been great this way! She basicly rocks and is the best wife in the world. I didn't get one byte! Below is a picture of Clint. He caught his only fish on his first cast. It was a nice 22 inch cutthroat. My father in law caught 3.

Miracles

In the Book of Mormon, chapter 9 it reads:

10 And now, if ye have imagined up unto yourselves a god who doth vary, and in whom there is shadow of changing, then have ye imagined up unto yourselves a god who is not a God of miracles.

11 But behold, I will show unto you a God of amiracles, even the God of Abraham, and the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob; and it is that same bGod who created the heavens and the earth, and all things that in them are.

17 Who shall say that it was not a miracle that by his aword the heaven and the earth should be; and by the power of his word man was bcreated of the cdust of the earth; and by the power of his word have miracles been wrought?

18 And who shall say that Jesus Christ did not do many mighty amiracles? And there were many bmighty miracles wrought by the hands of the apostles.

19 And if there were amiracles wrought then, why has God ceased to be a God of miracles and yet be an unchangeable Being? And behold, I say unto you he bchangeth not; if so he would cease to be God; and he ceaseth not to be God, and is a God of miracles.

I had an experience while I was in Redondo Beach, CA with a friend of mine, (Van) that was reminder of the Lord's mercies applied to his children. Van tells the story in his words in a letter he wrote to a lady he baptized on his mission years ago.

"The next day (Wednesday) the conference was scheduled for 8am to 9pm with a two-hour break at 3pm. A friend (Bryan) and I left at 3:30pm on the beach cruisers to go get wet. We were pretty anxious and excited and our time was limited. We hustled down and jumped in. Beautiful swells coming in and we had a great time making attempts at body surfing and not getting pummeled. I love the water, but at 4:20 I got slammed into the sand hard, square on the head, exactly what I was trying to avoid, but it happened anyway. I felt the shooting pain in my neck and knew it wasn’t good. Fortunately, all my faculties still worked and I hurried out of the water knowing that it could be bad and I needed to assess the situation quickly. My throat hurt and realizing that the week before I had been terribly sick I thought it was just my glands again. A quick assessment and I realized I was okay, but should be careful. We biked back to the hotel in time to clean up and return to the conference at 5pm. At 7:45pm I stepped out in pain and was having a hard time breathing. A small calm thought, “reduce swelling” settled in. I made my way to the nearest convenience store and located the Ibuprofen (anti-inflammatory) and returned at 8:15pm till close of the workshop at 9:40pm. I settled in at the hotel room saying a prayer and determined that the Lord was watching over me.
The next morning I returned to the conference after breakfast with Bryan. At 11:30 I had very strong impressions to call Emily and have her begin her research on the necessary steps for what it would take to properly treat something like this immediately on my return. My statement on the phone to her was, “my neck is very likely broken and I need to see a doctor tonight.” As concerning a statement this is, she was as calm as could be and so was I. We both felt things would be well, but I was strongly impressed to see a doctor tonight and to not wait. At 3pm the conference ended. At 6pm I was in the air back to Salt Lake City. I walked into my house at 9:20pm in time to hugs the kids, tuck them in, and make my way to the ER with Emily. My neighbor, a doctor, had indicated that he would set things up for in the morning if I wanted to wait, but didn’t recommend it. My impressions to go immediately were very strong, so we did.
The first doctor into the room was from Southern California. Miracle #1 in the ER.
The CT-Scan tech was from Southern California. Miracle #2 in the ER.
The Nurse was from LA – “Good thing you didn’t go to the ER in LA – you would have waited 15 hours and probably had to take a number.” Miracle #3 in the ER.
The Neuro-Spine Surgeon just happened to be in that night (1 of 2 in the entire area) and walked by when the first set of X-rays were being viewed in the hallway. Miracle #4 in the ER.
The fracture was on the front of the vertebra instead of the rear where the spinal column resides. Miracle #5 in the ER.
Fracture is in such a way that surgery is not probable and it will heal. Miracle #6 in the ER.
The MRI technician had decided to work and extra shift this week and was staying late. Miracle #7 in the ER.
Swelling, bleeding etc. was all very minimal. Miracle #8 in the ER.
All of the resources and all of the correct individuals were all present at 1am on a Friday morning to make a diagnosis with the ‘best’ possible outcome. I was overcome again. The Lord truly blesses us all in different ways.
Whether the accident was my fault or the ‘smite’ of the devil himself slamming me down I have been preserved and blessed beyond measure in everything I do. I contribute so much of it to my faithful ‘mission’ days and I can’t help but think about when those blessings will “run out.” I know for a fact the devil himself did not want me in LA this week. He did not want me to experience Joy. He did not want me to experience Happiness. And yet these are the two things that he will never be able to take away from me."

God is a God of miracles. I know this to be true. I've posted the video of Van getting smashed by the wave.

Redondo Beach

I'm currently on a business trip in Redondo Beach, CA. The weather is amazing. I'm in a hotel right off of the beach. I love the ocean. I could live here. I'm in training classes that take up most of the time. I have been able to break loose for a little bit. The blueberry pancakes I had yesterday morning at Jitters were amazing. After breakfast, I headed over to the beach. I was so tempted to just jump in the water fully clothed.

Redondo Beach pictures

Here are some pictures from my trip.

more pictures of Redondo Beach