Space

There is never enough time is there? The time we have and what we do with it is what matters the most because we are accountable for our time spent in this life. How, when we stand before God, can we think to justify what we do not actually believe? Excuses that seem well enough for others in this life, excuses that we adopt because we see them put to use, will pale in His presence. As such, time, in conjunction with our actions, is our most precious commodity.

It is easy to think, ever being raised in the gospel, that there will be plenty of time for worship and deity in our lives - later. 'Right now, I just want to have fun. I still believe, but I don’t want to do anything (about it).' While we are young it is very easy to slip into this state of mind that allows for sloppy adherence, even complacency. We are learning new things and seeking new experiences - rightly so, as these help shape us into the people we will be as adults.

However, it is very easy (especially for youth) to become distracted by those experiences and place the pursuit of more life experience above our eternal goals. Take the case of Alma the younger. Not only was he raised in the church, his father was the Prophet. Talk about serious blessings! Anyway, he and his friends (the sons of King Mosiah) began to kick against the pricks when it came to the gospel. Sure they were surrounded by people who believed, but they hadn’t ever experienced the conversion. I imagine Alma as a typical young man, looking to his father for all the answers while young, even believing for a time the teachings of his father. But, as all children know, 'Because my father said so' only carries you so far with your friends.

Alma and his friends not only rebelled by not coming to church and practicing their religion, they went about persecuting the righteous people in the church. How much dishonor did he bring his father and his family? I don’t know how to measure it other than to say: a lot. Of course, his father, Alma, prayed for both his sons and the sons of Mosiah. Because he had such great faith in the Lord, his son was visited by an angel while in the presence of his friends. So great was the power shed upon him that he fell to the ground and was unconscious for a few days. Of course, in the account we read that he repented of his ways and Alma and his friends spent the remainder of their lives trying to rectify the damage they had done.

This is but one account we have of a miraculous visit from a heavenly being. Now, how does that work? How do Angles simply appear and disappear into thin air? Let me tell you a story about a place called Flat-Land. Flat-Land is a place where everything is two-dimensional. Which means, all things in Flat-Land, trees, animals and people can only move towards or away from each other in their sphere (2D). What if a person was traveling along a road in Flat-Land and came up against a wall they could not climb? How would the person move past it? Let us assume that this person cannot dig under it and cannot go over it. What then?

Well, you, who are not in Flat-Land, might pick them up and place them on the other side of the wall. Of course, the Flat-Man has no understanding of moving in 3D, so all he knows is that you moved him from one side of the wall to the other - a miracle! What if Flat-Man was choking on something and you reached in from the side and took it out of his throat? Another miracle! And would that not make you an angel or even a god to him?

Now let us assume that Flat-Land represents the earth on which we reside. We are the Flat-People and God and his angels are the ones who do those things which we cannot, being so limited in our view and understanding. Taking that one step farther, how many worlds has God created? An infinite amount? Assume now, that every Earth is represented by another piece of paper and they are all laid on top of each other in a book. Or woven together in some tapestry that He keeps charge of.

Is that a little easier to understand how God can keep tabs on everything? Of course, this is metaphorical in nature, but the Space and Time issue in regards to miracles really made send to me when I was 12 years old.

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Also, Congratulations to my youngest brother and his new wife, Michon! They were married this last weekend and a joyous occasion was had by all. Good luck, you two!

Time

A good deal of time has passed since my last post. That happens when you have a full schedule and a large family. But then, time is a relative thing isn't it? We regulate time according to the Earth's rotation and revolution around the sun, so time is based on this planet. Is time then, different for God? I think the answer is unequivocally yes. Not to say that God is not felt on this earth by his Children, but that God physically dwells in his body on a separate planet than this earth.

Obviously, from the above paragraph you can see that I believe in God. Indeed, not as some formless, spiritual entity but as a physical being, even the very father of my spirit and every other spirit on this earth. I have thought long and hard about this over several years. You see, I was born into the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints (commonly referred to as Mormons). And though I was raised a member of the church, I never really understood, in any depth, the doctrines and teachings. I was baptized when I was 8 years old according to the traditions of the church and mostly because my parents wanted me to.

One of the best things about the Church, I have come to realize, is that it is an individual religion. It emphasizes your personal relationship with Jesus Christ as your Savior and God the eternal Father. But how can you achieve this confirmation that this (or any) church is true and what it purports to be? How can one gain a testimony of this? That is a very good question that I lacked the understanding to. You see, when you are baptized into my church, you are then confirmed a member by those in a authority to administer the ordinances of the Church. They place their hands on your head and confirm you a member of the church and then say the 4 magic words: receive the Holy Ghost.

The Holy Ghost is a member of the Godhead: Heavenly Father, Jesus Christ and the Holy Ghost (sometimes referred to as the Spirit of God, Holy Spirit, etc). All these members of the Godhead have been ordained Gods. Obviously God the Father is the Most High God and the one we pray to. He is the literal father of our spirits, even the other 2 members of the Godhead. He has a physical body of flesh and bone, which has be perfected by resurrection (follow that thought and you realize he must have lived as a mortal man at one point and walked an Earth as we do now). Jesus Christ also has a physical body, having lived as a mortal man in the middle east and after having been crucified, rose on the 3rd day as a resurrected being. Therefore, his body is also perfected flesh and bone. The Holy Ghost has a spirit body only, having never lived on this or any earth as a mortal.

The Holy Ghost has a physical presence wherever he happens to be at any given time. However, his influence can be felt virtually anywhere at any time. Think of it like rays of the sun. The Sun is always in one place, however, the light and heat from it can be felt over half of the world at once. Imagine if those rays penetrated the Earth and could be felt throughout the entire world at once. Then you have some concept of the influence of this member of the Godhead.

My point in this is that when I finally understood how the Holy Ghost's influence is recognized and felt, I had the remainder of my question. See, communication was my question: how does one communicate with God? We have half the answer through prayer. We can speak to God by praying to Him in the name of Jesus Christ. But God does not speak directly to man since the fall of Adam, except to introduce and bear witness of his son Jesus Christ. So, how does God answer us? Through the Holy Ghost. This influence can be felt directly as a peaceful, gentle feeling; some have described hearing a voice or a thought like a voice in their head. Sometimes the answer comes through another person. I have had experience where another member of the Church shows up seemingly randomly with a solution to a problem I have prayed about. They had no idea what was going on in my life, only that they felt the influence of the Holy Ghost to stop by.

The Holy Ghost can often bear witness to us of the truthfulness of all things. What I have found is when I am reading my scriptures there will be a passage that I have read many times and this time it will stick out to me and I will interpret it a different way that applies to my problem. It has been said that if you want God to talk to you, read your scriptures.

In any event, I was 26 when I finally seriously prayed to know if the Church was true. I read the Book of Mormon from cover to cover and prayed sincerely. I was immediately impressed with the delightful confirmation to my mind and heart. I felt as though someone were stand behind me as I knelt and placed their hands on my shoulders as if to comfort me. I have never forgotten that, and I have never doubted since. I only wish I had inquired sooner.

I will speak more of this next time. But let me leave you with one of my favorite poems:
I Love the Lord

I love the Lord, in Him my soul delights.
Upon His word, I ponder day and night.
He's heard my cry,brought visions to my sleep,
And kept me safe o'er deserts and the deep.
He's filled my heart with His consuming love,
And borne me high on wings of His great dove.

Yet oft I groan, "O wretched man am I"
My flesh is weak and I'm encompassed by
A world of sin, which holds me in it's thrall,
If I give in and to temptations fall.
Then strength grows slack, I waste in sorrow's vale;
My peace destroyed, my enemies prevail.

Awake, my soul! No longer droop in sin.
Rejoice, my heart! And let me praise again,
The Lord my God, who is my rock and stay
To keep me strict upon His straight, plain way.
Oh let me shake at the first sight of sin
And thus escape my foes without and in.

Life

Life is hard. It's trying and unfair. But then, it's suppose to be, isn't it?

I think that people who wonder what life is for usually haven't experienced enough of it. Try to think of you life in the context of bubbles. When you are born, the bubble is relatively small (i.e. you don't have much to do or learn). Well, as time passes and you grow up, the bubble becomes more constrictive because you experience more new things. And just when you feel that you are at the edge of bubble, you learn something that changes your point of view. Then you see that the bubble is far from full. At times like this you may have an epiphany of sorts, a moment of clarity, whatever you call it, wherein you realize that you have nothing but opportunity in front of you.

I remember well in my teenage years when I thought I knew everything. The bubble was tight and I felt almost suffocated by it. Then I got to college and saw that the world was vastly different from my HS reality. They bubble was empty in a way I never thought possible.

As time went on, I experienced this same effect of constricting and release after college, marriage and into fatherhood. It is a strange thing, when you stop and reflect, to see your whole life reflected in a tiny helpless form lying in your arms. So sweet and perfect and pure. All of a sudden things make sense. There wont be any more long weekends away from home. There wont be any more nights out with the guys. There wont be any more lies or deceit or imprudent judgement on your behalf. You are going to do everything you can to ensure that this little child has everything that you ever thought possible.

Thats life. You are at that moment, aligned with the enternalistic mindset I speak of. You see your entire existence in this brand new life and there isn't anything to change that. Some call it enlightenment or focus or any other myriad of words but what it means is this: you see what you live for; to provide for and protect this perfect being.

It gets better, by the way. You have to work though it, to be sure and there will be your share of pits to wade through. You'll have sorrows and snares but you'll also have that light of your family to be your center as long as you honor it. Someone told me one time that you'll be sitting there one day doing nothing in particular and that child will come up and through his/her arms around your neck and say 'Daddy, I love you.' And it will melt your heart. It did.

Even when they are older and more opinionated they will surprise you. Like when they are talking about something that happened at school that day and they say something like 'But I told them I didn't agree with that because you taught me it was mean, right Dad?'

What greater joy is there than in your own posterity? Is there any other source of both your greatest happiness and sorrow? I think that there is not.

So bloggers, keep your family as close as you can. They're the closest you'll find to angels here.

-M

Openings

You know what the crazy thing about blogs is? People let you in to their thoughts. It's like someone writing in a journal and leaving it on your kitchen table. You never see them writing but there is always something new from them. It's a guilty pleasure.
I dont know what thoughts of mine will help or hurt you. I dont know where this will take us. All I really wanted to do was post a thought or two of mine and see how I felt.
I probably wont tell you anything that will be life-altering, but on the off chance that I do.. Let me know about it, hmm?

For me.
I have used the name Mishima for a long time. I traced the genealogy of Musashi Musfane to a family in Japan which used that name and was smitten with it. MISHY-ma, mih-SHEE-ma, however you say it, it sounds cool. Genealogy is a hobby of mine; if you want some help with yours, let me know.
I believe in God and in the devil. I believe that people as a whole fall into one of two categories: those who take responsibility for their actions and those who look for someone else to take responsibility. Usually, I find that the ones who are responsible to be a high moral fiber and successful in their endeavors. Conversely, the other category seems to be less moral and successful.

I believe that one man and one woman can love each other and stay together with complete fidelity their entire lives and be better for it. I also think that society at large has forgotten this as a 'good idea.'
I believe that family is central to happiness in life and can also be the source of the most heartache. Maybe I will share some of my heartaches with you some time.

I believe that they world is so chaotic and unpredictable that any one person who can see it will become bogged down by it unless they have a form of hope to cling to. Some people interpret that hope as a beer with friends on the weekend or maybe a family vacation next month or even attending their favorite sporting event or place of worship. Whatever it may be, it is more directly relied on for their mental and physical well-being then they realize.

I think about a lot of things like blogging for example. Blogging is a good way to organize one's thoughts and to test out ideas and arguments. It can be a good way to keep in touch with friends and to make new ones. Remember 5-10 years ago when everyone was just getting their own website? Now it's blogs.

And blogs post the exact same danger that those websites did: information. Women post stories of what they are doing or have done, complete with pictures and places, times and dates. They post where they are going to be next weekend or where they work. Maybe how they cant stand the new security measures that the IT department it forcing on them or other frustrations about their dorm or the weird noises from your vehicle. You might even go so far as to remark how you would really like to learn self defense. Then people are shocked when you are abducted. People have the audacity to claim that you were 'quiet' and 'kept to yourself' or 'would never hurt anyone or say anything bad.'
You just provided the bad guys (oh yes, bad guys can use the internet from their very own home/library/etc) with your picture, vehicle, schedule and any other piece of information they might need to circumvent any security you may have. They recognize you without a second glance from all the time they've spent fantasizing over your posted pictures of you and your girlfriends out partying. They memorize you - you, on the other hand, wont even see them coming. What if it is your bartender? What about the guy you pass on the way to the parking lot?
I know. I'm paranoid right? Well, you will be too after it happens to someone you know. Ladies, dont be stupid. You are worth so much more than that.. You do not need the attention or praise you feel when some reader remarks "you're not ugly/fat/stupid, you're beautiful!" or "I would never treat you like that, you'd be my goddess/queen/etc." If someone wants to praise you, they will do so to your face. Not to a mental image of you on the internet. Stop making yourself a target and while you are at it, take some martial arts classes. I recommend starting now, not later.
One thing I will always try to do is help. I know a little about a lot of things. If you have a question that you just can not find the answer to, maybe I can help.

Until then,
-M