My Children's Book is now an eBook - RTYEP in "The Last Eagle To Fly." $3.99

http://tinyurl.com/oadpggx - Thank you, #Authorhouse! http://tinyurl.com/oadpggx

Ralph, The Young Eagle Prince in The Last Eagle to Fly, By J.R. Nelson / Illustrated by Jared Johnson

BOOK REVIEWS:

"What a phenominal book to teach our children and grandchildren the laws of life. The story of Ralph is inspiring and we should all want to have our families read this series of books in our homes.We believe that these books will be read to children around the world for years to come. This is an absolute home run!"

Reid and Yvonne Nelson

"As parents to 11 children, we have read many books to young people. One of the joys of a parent is being able to read a book to a child. The "Ralph" series may just be the next book that America falls in love with. J.R. Nelson might be the next Dr. Seuse."

Dave and Valerie Johnson "Business owners"

"Kids love the idea of flying. They have this inner universe, exploring all possibilities in their mind. To them flying is as much reality as is swimming, just that you do that in the air."

Lydia Proschinger, Success Coach www.myspace.com/JaneInSerendipity

"It is about time that a childrens book with subject matter as important as this is presented to children and their parents. It is an easy read that also teaches children some very profound vocabulary words and their deep meanings. A highly recommended book for young developing minds." GerryRobert.com http://theldslife.blogspot.com/2013/07/my-childrens-book-is-now-ebook-rtyep-in.html

Open debate Between "AreZee Isme" vs "TheLdsLife"

YouTuber "AreZee Isme" writes:

Date:07/19/13 Message:

I understand your position. What you fail to realize is that Christians have made a covenant with Christ to make disciples of all men. To fail to spread the true gospel means failing to keep their covenant. LDS are fine people. Exemplary citizens. What Christians want is for LDS to realize their beliefs are heretical. We want to see you in Heaven. Would you have us stand idly while believing you are headed to perdition? That would be more than merely "rude". Eternity is at stake. Your missionaries try to lead others into accepting the false teachings of Joseph Smith. Christians cannot stand by and let that happen without at least trying to lead you back into the fold of orthodox belief. It is out of great love and concern for you that Christians must and will continue witnessing to LDS of the true faith in Crust.

Rebuttal:

Above all, know this: that, Truth is truth even if nobody believes it. Just ask Noah and his family... but I digress.

While appreciate your concern which seems so plausible especially when one listens to the way their pastors makes us sound or perhaps what another YouTube'r has had to say about us, it should always and more directly be about to which source are we getting our information. All must walk the path of discovery however it is usually the path least traveled that makes all of the difference.

When Joseph Smith went to a grove, he asked God about which church he should join and not "how can I help you establish the true one." I know by the power of the Holy Spirit that this did happen and so can you.

Just as Samuel the boy prophet did become so, so did our modern hero just as in the days we read about from the Bible. And as the Apostle Stephen surely saw God the Father and his son, Jesus Christ in a vision so did Joseph Smith. I know this apart from any man's opinion, apart from my father's words or the words of his father before him.

While you may have been given carefully crafted sermons on "how to reach out to your Mormon brethren" be the more you spend time with actual members of the church, the more the Ed Decker's or the Shawn McCraney's of the world appear to be 1 card short of a deck of cards.

You're welcome to listen to their witness alone, which is your choice, or the witness that we LDS give to all men but between you and I, I think John's words on the matter help to illuminate any mis-understood concept that may exist between how we interpret the scriptures and how others in the remaining 20,000 different sects of Christianity choose to interpret them. (1 John 5:9)

One must not need suppose that because we LDS differ in how we interpret or understand the scriptures that ours is much less permissible than the rest of main stream Christianity.

Questions for All:<i>What think y'all of the words in 1 John?

Can we men truly become objective thinkers enough to seek a witness from God above that of all other men?

It could be the opinions of men that a man who was born blind must have sinned before coming to the earth or perhaps his parents had sinned.

Wouldn't we need a great clarifier to know the truth behind this and any other matter?

Are Mormons damned to hell, in your minds, simply because this is something you are told about us?

If you use scriptures to support yours or their ideas about us, how much greater are you than they who used the "law" or the scriptures that were available to them in their day to condemn Jesus and crucify him?

A lot of damage can be and was done anciently in the name of God, using his scriptures as a weapon. Can we agree at least on this? They TOO thought that their behavior was justified in the scripture.

God desires that we should be prudent and to thoroughly seek him out APART from the opinions and ideas of other men, I should think. Question for AreZee Isme:

How much of what others tell you has helped you form your opinion about the Mormons?

I, the Lord, will forgive whom I will forgive...

"I, the Lord, will forgive whom I will forgive, but of you it is required to forgive all men." Doctrine and Covenants 64:10

I've long been pondering this passage of scripture. I have at times heard when men have spoken at the pulpit. br />
Some have said, "I can only hope that when I leave this life, that I will do so free from any offense towards God and towards men." Some have possibly been able to already suppose they are worthy of this distinction. I on the other hand am very far from being able to say this or to elude that my life hasn't gone in the direction that it should or that perhaps I may have led others astray. I may have been guilty of leading entire generations of peoples to their destruction for not saying hello to them once at church, perhaps? How does God help to sort this out? Which part is mine and which part is God's, one may ask, correct?

Is it really that simple? Are we really that close to God and eternal blessings?

It saddens me, at times, that I myself and also others around me are so easily offended. I have been on both ends of the stick as far as being the offender and the offended happens to go.

But in the New Testament we learn this. "For if ye forgive men their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you:" Matt 6:14 Can we TRULY take this verse literally? And the subsequent verse about the reverse consequence would then also have to be true? Is it REALLY our job to simply learn how to forgive others?

I have spent many hours and days worrying about all of these things and wondering if life is even worth it to live when we consider that it's possible that others will not choose eternal life based on mine or the bad behavior of those I am stewards over.

We all know that it is an impossible and arduous and daunting task to even consider perfection in so many aspects of our lives. We are reminded every Sunday what it is that we are or we are not doing. We may be working on indexing (for genealogy) and have fallen very short of our goals and we then wonder about how much more we could have done if we had been more diligent. Case in point, I was working at my calling as the new assistant ward clerk in my ward and for the final 10 minutes of the 2nd hour, I decided to visit the church Genealogy library and see what I could do in that short time. I had about 6 minutes and felt I could arbitrate at least 1, maybe 2 census records. (For those who don't know what this is, an arbitrator can look over 1 record that has already been indexed by 2 or more others and then apply corrections or veto certain things to then make the record accurate and submission ready.)

So I was there and then all of the sudden, I got a slap on the shoulder by someone else in the ward saying, "Hey, there's our leader right here!" or something of the sort, and I replied somewhat confused to then say, "Uh, I guess I am?" - I didn't think I had nearly the numbers sufficient to receive praise. After all, I played a Zombie video game with my 13 year old earlier in the week and if truth be told, this game didn't have as clean of a rating as "T" for teen. There were many other times throughout this first half of the year when I would prefer to do my own will vs spend my hours doing key strokes for something that would not pay me something in a monetary form.

Could forgiveness be attained by something as simple as that? Will God come up to us, despite our many short comings, and say, "No, no need to fear little one. You are mine. You did well! Better than I had even hoped for you!" and would this not still leave me puzzled and befuddled at the mercy and goodness of our savior Jesus Christ for applying his faith to each of us as we have exercised ours in him? I would prefer that the answer to my own question is a resounding YES.

Could we really outshine our own misdeeds by a few simple improvements to our life? Can we truly become leaders of many things by being obedient and faithful in just a few while in life?

In my new calling, I was reminded of my own boorish behavior when just 2 years later a family had left the ward boundaries and moved upstate Washington someplace. That dreaded day had come. What became of them? 'They certainly had not found their new ward or had gone to church again since,' I thought to myself. They were a part member family before I came along and ruined it, to be sure.

Back in the summer of 2010, I invited their eldest son to join me in the local Clark County Fair and help me with my booth some 3 weeks before the event. We were trying to adequately decide compensation. I put out fliers and so did he. I was just getting my own feet wet and failing at the same time with this youth. To make a long story short, it ended up bad and feelings were trampled on. I came over and removed the demonstration equipment that I had loaned him for trail and learning and decided not to go with the boy. I returned days later, before the 10 day event, and tried to reconcile. When I tried to pay the eldest son, his father nearly refused me and disallowed me to even pay his son for the work that I did actually see him do. The feelings of bitterness continued on and I felt powerless to make amends. His younger son was disallowed to participate in various scouting programs that I was involved with. If I understand correctly the reason why his son never went camping with us it was because Dad said he would camp in the backyard with him, instead."

So they move out of the ward 2 summers ago and never alerted the new meeting house which would be the father's responsibility to do but none of that matters anymore does it? I have consigned a family to Hell. Why then should me and my family get to live in the good place? How would that be fair? A just God would and should reward me for my boorish behavior unto the ends of the law. If I'm lucky, I may live long enough to see my boys get married in the temple. MAYBE they will be more wise than I have been. Perhaps they may escape this live having offended NONE but not me! I have offended people in business and ostracized others who did not meet my expectations. Can this stay in the past? For months, I felt that it could not. I began to spiral out of control spiritually allowing any and all anxieties of mind occupy my thinking.

I struggled for many months with these feelings of regrets. I have offended more than just one. I have lied to more than just one. I felt like an outcast already and neither of these experiences in life was helping matters any. My body has suffered illness and pains in the chest, I have felt depression and anxiety over my many mis-deeds. For HOW could it be fair that me and my family get to enjoy eternity and a wealth of blessings KNOWING that it is possible now that others will be kept away from those blessings based on my stupidity?

I think I can forgive myself for my own sins or for the things I have committed against myself but what of the other sins committed against mankind? All of these do I lay before the foot of the Lord and hope. That hope is that somehow someway there is mercy in the cards, for me and my family. I pray that as I forgive others of their trespasses against me that I may obtain forgiveness. Else why are we here? Surely God is no respecter of persons. Surely God is both fair and just. Even if I have to spend the rest of my life trying to repair the wrongs that I have done against humanity, I should hope that I too may say but with meaning, "May I now go unto my God being rid of the blood and sins of this generation" having done all that I can to stand and having defended the name of Christ even until Death!" Regardless of when that should happen, it is my hope that I may return to that heavenly place with honor!

Mormons Did Not Plagiarize Freemasonry *Revisited*

I have heard so much static and noise about "Joseph Smith" stealing the temple stuff from Freemasons. Their arguments just do not trump what has been established in the written records of the church, observations of the early saints, and the timeline of events which put the Lord's revelations ahead of Joseph Smith even joining his local lodge / joining this fraternity. (I am not a Freemason and don't really have a dog in the fight...)

But for me, saying that Joseph Smith plagiarized the Masons makes about as much sense as saying that the Trekkers west to Utah plagiarized the Pioneers on the Oregon Trail for using covered wagons which we all should clearly see were used by non-Mormons heading to the NorthWest Territories. Mormons copied their methods in order to travel. Each trek west had a different purpose altogether. Likewise, each ceremony in the LDS temples and supposedly in freemasonry have entirely different purposes and meanings.

Some critics of Mormonism see similarities between the rites of Freemasonry and LDS temple ceremonies and assume that since Joseph Smith was initiated as a Freemason shortly before he introduced the Nauvoo-style endowment he must have plagiarized elements of the Masonic rituals. This viewpoint leads them, in turn, to conclude that the LDS endowment is nothing but a variant form of Masonic initiation and therefore not from a divine source.

Joseph Smith was initiated as a Freemason on the 15th and 16th of March 1842. But previously, on the 19th of Janaury 1841, the Lord issued a revelation wherein He stated that He was going to "restore again," through Joseph Smith, the "lost" ordinances which had once been practiced in the Tabernacle built by Moses and the house built in the land of promise. (So 18 months later, he joins the fraternity) This then meaning he would restore the organization and the blessings that God gave to Ancient Israel from the days of the temple of Solomon (D&C 124:28, 38).

The Lord also provided a list within this revelation of many ritual elements that would eventually be practiced inside of the Nauvoo Temple. Some of the elements mentioned in this revelation are the same ones that Joseph Smith is accused of plagiarizing from the Freemasons.

A detailed look at LDS Church history before the 15th and 16th of March 1842 reveals that Joseph Smith and some of his colleagues were well aware of a number of Nauvoo-style temple ritual items early on - including ideology, vestments, actions, forms, language, and architecture. Knowledge of many of these things even predated the revelation given on 19 January 1841 (D&C 124). A careful look at the pre-1842 scriptural texts produced through Joseph Smith's instrumentality is also very instructive because they include a wealth of information connected with the rites that would be introduced among the Saints during the Nauvoo period.

Joseph Smith and other nineteenth century Mormons had a definite stance on why there were similarities between the initiation rituals of the respective groups. They taught that there was an original "Priesthood" source of divinely-determined ceremonies: the Masons derived their system from degenerated branches of this source while pristine material was restored to the Latter-day Saints.

One of the strongest evidences that Joseph Smith did not plagiarize Masonic sources in order to 'create' the LDS temple endowment is that 20th and 21st century scholarship has greatly clarified the picture of initiation rites in the biblical and early Christian periods. A comparison of this picture with Joseph Smith's model and the Masonic model shows that what the Prophet gave to the Saints is indeed a restoration, while the Freemasons only possess fragments of the God-given scheme.

(Text came courteous of TheLdsLife Channel; which posed as a rebuttal to a Utah News Channel Exclusive Story in the differences or similarities between Mormons and Masons.) http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6TMar7X9YzM Whether you are a Christian or a Mormon or an atheist, nothing but the Temple Endowment, for me, has helped me to best answer my questions as to what Revelation 1:5-6 means and how men on earth are prepared for their "Kingly Reign" as mentioned by John the Revelator. For they TOO were made clean through the blood of the lamb and they too were made into Kings and Priests unto the Most High God. Is this NOT the inheritance of man? If your church is not teaching this, then I suggest that you examine closer as to what rich blessings GOD has in store for you!

I share this information with you because to me, I don't think it is FAIR that I have these wonderful blessings and others do not, while on this earth. Doesn't mean that I will convert everyone or find everyone while in this life. I have been richly blessed and whatever grace has been afforded to me, I want to do ALL that I can and ALL within my power to PREACH the gospel of Jesus Christ unto ALL THE WORLD! This I do, in the sacred name of Jesus Christ who is mighty to save; whose bowels are filled with mercy, AMEN!