God's Love

A year ago, a missionary for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints sent me a letter for my birthday.  Since my birthday is coming around again this year I wanted to talk a little bit about that letter.  Elder Johnson said something in his letter that has had me thinking since I read it.

"One thing I've learned recently is the love the Lord has for his children.  I guess I always knew it, but now I feel it!  I'm sure you know what I mean.  When you feel something it is the spirit manifesting the truth of it all the time.  That is the goal. " Elder Johnson - October 26, 2009

That one comment about "now I feel it", made me think.  I have felt the spirit of the Lord on a lot of occasions.  When I was married in the temple, during the birth and the baptisms of my children, and it has testified of the truth during other church meetings.   But have I ever really felt the love of the Lord?   This blog post is to help me find the answer to that question.  Have I ever felt the Love of the Lord?  I am not talking about the manifestation of the Spirit that testifies of truth, but the feeling that the Lord and our Heavenly Father loves me.  I have felt love a lot of times.  I have felt the love of my wife, my parents, family members, and my children.  But have I really ever felt the love of the Lord?

Lets start by defining what God's Love really is.  God, our Heavenly Father, and Jesus Christ, our eldest brother are two different beings.   The scriptures tell us that they are one in purpose, and that Christ is like the Father and that they are as one. (3 Nephi 28:10).  By studying some of the attributes of our Heavenly Father and Christ, we get an idea of what their love would be like.

In a revelation given through Joseph Smith the Prophet in April 1830, we are told that:  "By these things we know that there is a God in heaven, who is infinite and eternal, from everlasting to everlasting the same unchangeable God, the framer of heaven and earth, and all things which are in them;" (D&C 20:17).  I think that we can take these attributes and then apply them to the Love that our Heavenly Father and Christ have.  We learn that their love is infinite, eternal, everlasting, and unchangeable.  We could also say that because both Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ are perfect, then their love must be a perfect love as well.

In the first book of Nephi, Nephi's father Lehi tells his sons about visions he has had.  Nephi wants to know the meaning of the visions his father had, so he prays to God.   God tells him what he wants to know, and in chapter 11 we are give more information on the love of God.  "Yea, it is the love of God, which sheddeth itself abroad in the hearts of the children of men; wherefore, it is the most desirable above all things." (1 Nephi 11:22).  Not only is his love perfect and everlasting, but it is the "most desirable" thing we could want to have.

We also learn that it is very important for us to have and show love.

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

37 Jesus said unto him, Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind.

38 This is the first and great commandment.

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

40 On these two commandments hang all the law and the prophets.

(Matthew 22:36-40)

Why do you think that loving God and our neighbors are on the top of the list of commandments?  If you ask most people, they would tell you that it is because it is a way for us to sacrifice and to put aside the natural man.  That by loving God and others, we show that we really do indeed love God.    I think it has more of a meaning than that.  I think that by loving God and our neighbors, we are actually feeling Gods love.   Let me explain.

In John chapter 4, we are told alot about love.  He adds to the doctrine taught in Matthew.  

• 7: every one that loveth is born of God, and knoweth God
• 8: for God is love
• 10: Herein is love, not that we loved God, but that he loved us, and sent his Son
• 11: God dwelleth in us, and his love is perfected in us
• 16: God is love; and he that dwelleth in love dwelleth in God, and God in him.
• 21: That he who loveth God love his brother also

I think I finally understand.  Elder Johnson is really feeling the love of God, what better way to feel the love of God than to be serving your fellow men on a mission.  By serving and loving them, you are feeling the love of God.  The more you share and show love, the more you will feel the love of God.  (Note:  Just think, the more children you have, and the more love you show them, the greater the love you will feel from God.  Maybe that is also one of the reasons the Church has such a positive stance to wards families.)

Elder Gene R Cook of the Seventy in a talk called, "Charity: Perfect and Everlasting Love" stated the following:

Recognizing, Receiving, and Conveying God’s Love

How, then, can we better “clothe [ourselves] with the bond of charity … of perfectness and peace”? May I share with you three suggestions

1. Recognize His love. “Pray … with all the energy of heart” for this gift. Do so in meekness with a broken heart, and you will be filled with hope and love from the Holy Ghost Himself. He will reveal Christ to you.

It is part of the gift of charity to be able to recognize the Lord’s hand and feel His love in all that surrounds us. At times it will not be easy to discover the Lord’s love for us in all that we experience, because He is a perfect, anonymous giver. You will search all your life to uncover His hand and the gifts He has bestowed upon you because of His intimate, modest, humble way of granting such wonderful gifts.

Ponder with me a moment the following majestic gifts: the glories of all creation, the earth, the heavens; your feelings of love and joy; His responses of mercy, forgiveness, and innumerable answers to prayer; the gift of loved ones; and finally the greatest gift of all—the Father’s gift of His atoning Son, the perfect one in charity, even the God of love.

2. Receive His love in humility. Be grateful for the gift and especially for the giver of the gift. True gratitude is the ability to humbly see, feel, and even receive love. Gratitude is a form of returning love to God. Recognize His hand, tell Him so, express your love to Him. As you come to truly know the Lord, you will find an intimate, sacred relationship built on trust. You will come to know He understands your anguish and will, in compassion, always respond to you in love.

Receive it. Feel it. It is not enough just to know that God loves you. The gift is to be felt continually day by day. It will then be a divine motivator throughout your life. Repent. Remove any worldliness from your life, including anger. Receive a continual remission of your sins, and you will bridle all your passions and be filled with love.

3. Convey His love. The Lord’s response to us is always filled with love. Should not our response to Him be in kind, with real feelings of love? He gives grace (or goodness) for grace, attribute for attribute. As our obedience increases, we receive more grace (or goodness) for the grace we return to Him. Offer Him the refinement of your attributes, so that when He does appear you will be like Him.

As a man first immerses his thoughts in love and conveys those feelings to God, man, or self, a magnified portion of that attribute will surely follow from the Spirit. That is true of all godly attributes. Righteous feelings generated by a man seem to precede the increase of those feelings from the Spirit. Unless you are feeling love, you cannot convey true love to others. The Lord has told us to love one another as He loves us, so remember: to be loved, truly love.

Elder Cook finishes by saying:

Brothers and sisters, as an especial witness of Christ, I bear testimony to you again of the overwhelming love of God for each of us personally. Magnifying that gift from God will bring a new heart, a pure heart, and ever-increasing love and peace. As we increasingly think and act like Him, the attributes of the natural man will slip away to be replaced by the heart and the mind of Christ. We will become like Him and then truly receive Him.

The scriptures and the prophets tell us that if we love one another, then we will in turn feel the love of Jesus Christ and the love of our Heavenly Father.  I guess that if I want to feel the love of God more in my life, that I better stop thinking about myself and start showing more love to wards those around me.

In his talk, Elder Cook talks about the Destroyers of Love,

"Yet there stands the devil, the destroyer of this love, replacing it with anger and hostility. My friend William felt that way: hostile. It seemed that whatever happened, it was the Lord’s fault—an illness, a death, a wayward child, a personal weakness, an “unanswered” prayer—all of which hardened his heart. His inner anger, which could flare up in but a moment, was directed toward God, his fellowman, and himself. From his heart emanated unbelief, stubbornness, pride, contention, and a loss of hope, love, and direction. He was miserable!

These destroyers of peace blinded William to God’s feelings for him. He could neither discover nor feel God’s love. He did not see, especially in those dark moments, that God was richly blessing him even still. Instead, he returned anger for love. Have we not all felt that at times? Even when we have merited love the least, He has loved us the most. Truly, He loves us first.

If we want to feel of Gods love, we also need to remove anything from our lives that takes away from the love and peace we can show to others.  If we watch, listen, or participate in things that are contrary to Gods will, we will not be able to feel his love.

But we must always remember, just because our lives may not me in order for us to constantly feel the love of God, that does not mean that He does not Love us.   We just need to find what in our life is stopping us from being able to see that love.  If we do that, we will taste of his love, and it will be the "most desirable" thing we could want and seek.  It is a never ending cycle.  The more you love others, the more you feel the love of God, and the more you desire that feeling.  We just need to remember that Satan is trying to stop us from feeling that love, and trying to make us think that other things are more desirable than it.

President packer... Cont.

A lot has been said and a lot will be said about President Packer's talk from Conference Oct 2010.  Someone forwarded this link to me:

http://gaymormonguy.blogspot.com/2010/10/president-packers-talk-from-gay-mormon.html?spref=fb

This is a blog post by a Gay Mormon and his presepective on the talk.  It think that the author of this blog understands the post better than I did.  Please give it a read, he has a very insightful insight.

Everlasing punishment

In the Book of Mormon, there is a King/Prophet named Benjamin, that while serving his people helped them keep peace for a long time.  He is about to die, so he is addressing his people one final time.  I would say that this is the first account of a General Conference in the scriptures.  King Benjamin has everyone gather in family groups around the Temple.  He then builds a tower so that as many people as possible can hear him. (We now use mass media). Then has the words written down so that those who could not hear him can read his words. (The Ensign, and Internet are used now.)  Sounds like what the Church is doing today twice a year.  Gather the saints, give them counsel and doctrine, and then writing it down so people who could not hear can read it.

During his final words, he says this Mosiah 2:31-36:

31 And now, my brethren, I would that ye should do as ye have hitherto done. As ye have kept my commandments, and also the commandments of my father, and have prospered, and have been kept from falling into the hands of your enemies, even so if ye shall keep the commandments of my son, or the commandments of God which shall be delivered unto you by him, ye shall prosper in the land, and your enemies shall have no power over you.


32 But, O my people, beware lest there shall arise contentions among you, and ye list to obey the evil spirit, which was spoken of by my father Mosiah.

33 For behold, there is a wo pronounced upon him who listeth to obey that spirit; for if he listeth to obey him, and remaineth and dieth in his sins, the same drinketh damnation to his own soul; for he receiveth for his wages an everlasting punishment, having transgressed the law of God contrary to his own knowledge.

34 I say unto you, that there are not any among you, except it be your little children that have not been taught concerning these things, but what knoweth that ye are eternally indebted to your heavenly Father, to render to him all that you have and are; and also have been taught concerning the records which contain the prophecies which have been spoken by the holy prophets, even down to the time our father, Lehi, left Jerusalem;

35 And also, all that has been spoken by our fathers until now. And behold, also, they spake that which was commanded them of the Lord; therefore, they are just and true.

36 And now, I say unto you, my brethren, that after ye have known and have been taught all these things, if ye should transgress and go contrary to that which has been spoken, that ye do withdraw yourselves from the Spirit of the Lord, that it may have no place in you to guide you in wisdom’s paths that ye may be blessed, prospered, and preserved—

He makes the point that the keeping the Lords commandments have kept them safe  for generations.  Notice that he also passes the office to someone else and says that by following the next prophet we can also be protected.  Then he points out that if they start to have contentions among themselves that things are going to change.
 
He also mentions that everyone knows this expect for the little children.  I think that he is implying that we need to keep educating the children, or we will also lose our peaceful state.
 
I think that this scripture applies to us now.  There has been a lot of contentions among the saints concerning Prop 8, and President Packer's recent conference talk.   We need to make sure that we do not "list to obey the evil spirit", and that we teach our children what the prophets have said.  (As a member of the LDS Church, I have sustained President Packer as a Prophet, Seer and Revelator, and have agreed to support him in his calling.  By supporting him, I also agree to follow his warnings and council.)
 
King Benjamin in those versus then tells us, "ye have known and have been taught all these things, if you should transgress and go contrary to that which has been spoken, you do withdraw yourself from the Spirit of the Lord, that it my have no place in you to guide you in wisdom's paths that ye may be blessed, prospered, and preserved--"   I think this warning still stands.  If we go contrary to what the prophets have spoken then we lose blessings, the promise of prosperity, and will not be preserved.

NOTE: I just want to make something clear.  I am not saying that homosexuals will get Everlasting punishment.  The people that will get Everlasing punishment are those that fight the council and words of the prophets.  Those that harbor the spirit of contention and cause fighting between the saints of the Church.  That applies to both Heterosexuals and Homosexuals.

President Packer said WHAT?

There has been a lot of "wars, and rumors of wars" over what President Boyd K Packer said in the Oct 2010 General Conference about the stance the Church has on Homosexuality.  The wars have started because of a talk entitled, "Cleansing the Inner Vessel."  In that talk President Packer says:

We teach a standard of moral conduct that will protect us from Satan’s many substitutes or counterfeits for marriage. We must understand that any persuasion to enter into any relationship that is not in harmony with the principles of the gospel must be wrong. From the Book of Mormon we learn that “wickedness never was happiness.” Alma 41:10

Some suppose that they were preset and cannot overcome what they feel are inborn temptations toward the impure and unnatural. Not so! Remember, God is our Heavenly Father.

First I want to point out, that no where in his talk does he say that we DON'T LOVE anyone, and that we should PERSECUTE anyone or HATE them.  As an apostle of the Lord, he is giving us advise and telling us about things in the world that we should avoid and not justify.

There are a couple of things I want to remind people of when they respond to this talk.  There are a couple of misconceptions that people are using to, "kick against the pricks, to persecute the saints, and to fight against God." (D&C 121:38)

First, who's church is it....

A lot of people forget when they are trying to persuade people to fight against the words of President Packer that this is not President Packer's church.   This is not President Monson's church, your church, my church or the member's church.   We all may belong to the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints (LDS), but it is not our church.  We need to remember that this is the Lord's church.  It is a church that is not lead by men, but lead by Jesus Christ himself and our Heavenly Father.  If you don't have a testimony of who is really in charge of this church, then you need to get down on your knees and ask the Lord to testify with his spirit and the Holy Ghost to let you KNOW it is His church.  This church is not the church of man, it is the church of GOD.  


Second, GOD does not change...
A lot of people are also confused on this topic.  Yes, it is true that GOD does not change.  There are a lot of scriptures that say He is "the same yesterday, to-day, and forever".  Yes, God's nature is unchangeable.  And there are a couple of things that GOD cannot do.  He cannot deny His Son, and He cannot lie.  If He does either of those, He will exist to be God. (Titus 1:2)  He also can't rob justice from mercy or mercy from justice. (See Alma 42).  But I have yet to find a place in the scriptures where it says His doctrine, or His church cannot change.  In fact, there are a lot of scriptures, old and new, that say the opposite.

Adam and Eve in the garden had a different law than they had after the fall.   The Israelites had a different law before the 10 commandments.   After Christ came to the Earth and gave the ultimate sacrifice, the law changed again.  It changed from "an Eye for an Eye" to "turn the other cheek" (Matt 5:39, 3 Nephi 12:39).

My point is that the Gospel of God's church does change.  It changes over time.  But it changes because God changes it, not because man thinks that God should change it.  This principle is also taught in the scriptures.  Remember these concepts?  "For precept must be upon precept, precept upon precept; line upon line, line upon line; here a little, and there a little" (Isaiah 28:10,13).  Or how about the concept of milk before meat? "For they cannot bear meat now, but milk they must receive'" (D&C 19:22).  As we become a more religious society, God gives us more doctrine, and laws to help us achieve the ultimate goal, and that is to become perfect has He is, and to return to live with Him. But there are MORAL laws that he will never change or consider changing.

The reason I bring this up is that some people think that because God has changed in some of his doctrine, namely the practice of polygamy (polygamy is still an eternal law) and blacks holding the priesthood, that he will change his view on homosexuality.  BUT, the Lord will not change his stance on a MORAL issue, the Lord has told us through his prophets that it is an "impure and unnatural" practice.   It does not matter how many people protest it, God will not change his doctrine on a MORAL issue.   (Do you really think that homosexuality brings us closer to God?)  The practice also goes against the first law given to Adam and Eve to "multiply , and replenish the earth..."

There are a LOT of things that the Church has taken a stand on.  They have a very strong stance against Murder, Adultery, Fornication, Bestiality, Incest, Rape, Necrophilia.  All of which are also choices that people have made, and are moral  issues.  I don't see anyone trying to get the church to change its stance on any of these.  Some people have a harder time with temptation than others.  There are some people who become addicted to drugs after one use, and others that can stop at any time.  That does not mean that God should change his stance on either of those.  Everyone has their trials, but that does not mean that God should approve of actions because they are what man or people think should be OK to do.

God does not change, the administration of His church does change, and will change.  But he will not change his stance on a moral issue.  No matter how hard people protest, or say that something should be, does not make it so.  President Packer makes ths point at the begining of his so called hate talk.

Fifteen years ago, with the world in turmoil, the First Presidency and the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles issued “The Family: A Proclamation to the World,” the fifth proclamation in the history of the Church. It is a guide that members of the Church would do well to read and to follow.


It states in part: “We, the First Presidency and the Council of the Twelve Apostles of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, solemnly proclaim that marriage between a man and a woman is ordained of God and that the family is central to the Creator’s plan for the eternal destiny of His children.” (The Family: A Proclamation to the World)

“The Gods went down to organize man in their own image, in the image of the Gods to form they him, male and female to form they them.

“And the Gods said: We will bless them. And . . . we will cause them to be fruitful and multiply, and replenish the earth, and subdue it.” (Abraham 4:27-28)

This commandment has never been rescinded.

Third, why all the HATE....

If I hear one more person tell me, that because the church has taken a stance on something that they are preaching Hate, I will SCREAM.  Show me where in any of the official doctrine of the church where we are told that we are to HATE someone because of a sin, or immoral practice they are engaging in.  Not once in President Packers talk does he say we should HATE anyone that is struggling with homosexuality.  I see the exact opposite in the talk.  He talks about how God suffered for us so we could overcome sin.  And that if we live what God has told us that we will be happy.  Not once does he preach hate. 
 
Where is all the talk of Hate when the church takes a stand against Murder, Adultery, Drugs....   Just because the church says that something is wrong does not mean the church preaches HATE to wards those that are struggling with that sin. 
 
Being intolerant of an action does not mean someone is intolerant of the person participating in that action.  You can truly HATE a sin, but LOVE the sinner.  Because you HATE the sin, does not mean that you automatically HATE the sinner.  If you are being true to the teachings of the church, we are taught the total opposite.  We are taught that EVERYONE is a child of God, and has a divine potential.  We are also taught that EVERYONE is a brother and sister of God, and they deserve our love as a brother and sister.  But we do not have to LOVE or tolerate behavior that we are taught is contrary to Gods plan.
 
In conclusion....
We have to remember why God has a church on earth, and why we are given commandments.  Some of them are to test our faith, but ALL of them are to help prepare us to return to live with him again.   I think that President Packer said it best, in the talk he is getting blasted for, at the end he said:

President Joseph Fielding Smith told me of a repentant woman struggling to find her way out of a very immoral life. She asked him what she should do now.

In turn, he asked her to read to him from the Old Testament the account of Lot’s wife, who was turned to a pillar of salt. (Genesis 19:26) Then he asked her, “What lesson do you gain from those verses?”

She answered, “The Lord will destroy the wicked.”

“Not so!” President Smith said that the lesson for this repentant woman and for you is “Don’t look back!” (Boyd K. Packer, The Things of the Soul (1996), 116)

Strangely enough, it may be that the simplest and most powerful prevention and cure for pornography, or any unclean act, is to ignore and avoid it. Delete from the mind any unworthy thought that tries to take root. Once you have decided to remain clean, you are asserting your God-given agency. And then, as President Smith counseled, “Don’t look back.”

I promise that ahead of you is peace and happiness for you and your family. The ultimate end of all activity in the Church is that a man and his wife and their children can be happy at home. And I invoke the blessings of the Lord upon you who are struggling against this terrible plague, to find the healing that is available to us in the priesthood of the Lord. I bear witness of that power in the name of Jesus Christ, amen.

Note, he does not call down the wrath of God on those who "struggle against this terrible plague".   He calls down the blessings of God.  Where is the HATE?

Wandering in the desert

Do you ever feel that life is like wandering in a desert.  You have no idea where you are, where you have been, or where you are going?   The only thing you know is that it is hot and you think you have been here before.

After Lehi, his family, and Ishmael's family left Jerusalem and were traveling in the wilderness, the Lord directed them in their travels with a Liahona.  Nephi describes it as such.

And it came to pass that as my father arose in the morning, and went forth to the tent door, to his great astonishment he beheld upon the ground a round ball of curious workmanship; and it was of fine brass. And within the ball were two spindles; and the one pointed the way whither we should go into the wilderness. [1 Nephi 16:10]

Alma later in the Book of Mormon talks about the Liahona to his son Helaman.

38 And now, my son, I have somewhat to say concerning the thing which our fathers call a ball, or director—or our fathers called it Liahona, which is, being interpreted, a compass; and the Lord prepared it.


39 And behold, there cannot any man work after the manner of so curious a workmanship. And behold, it was prepared to show unto our fathers the course which they should travel in the wilderness.

40 And it did work for them according to their faith in God; therefore, if they had faith to believe that God could cause that those spindles should point the way they should go, behold, it was done; therefore they had this miracle, and also many other miracles wrought by the power of God, day by day. [Alma 37:38-40]

Notice how Alma said that "there cannot any man work after the manner of so curious a workmanship."  The Liahona was a gift from God, not something that a man could create.  Alama continues to say that the Liahona is a type for Christ and his words.  Elder W. Rolfe Kerr of the Seventy talks about this in his talk, "The Words of Christ - Our Spiritual Liahona". 

Elder David A. Bednar in a talk dated, May 2006 titled "That We May Always Have His Spirit to Be with Us" talks just about that subject. 

As we strive to align our attitudes and actions with righteousness, then the Holy Ghost becomes for us today what the Liahona was for Lehi and his family in their day. The very factors that caused the Liahona to work for Lehi will likewise invite the Holy Ghost into our lives. And the very factors that caused the Liahona not to work anciently will likewise cause us to withdraw ourselves from the Holy Ghost today.

He then continues:

As we study and ponder the purposes of the Liahona and the principles by which it operated, I testify that we will receive inspiration suited to our individual and family circumstances and needs. We can and will be blessed with ongoing direction from the Holy Ghost.


The Liahona was prepared by the Lord and given to Lehi and his family after they left Jerusalem and were traveling in the wilderness (see Alma 37:38; D&C 17:1). This compass or director pointed the way that Lehi and his caravan should go (see 1 Ne. 16:10), even “a straight course to the promised land” (Alma 37:44). The pointers in the Liahona operated “according to the faith and diligence and heed” (1 Ne. 16:28) of the travelers and failed to work when family members were contentious, rude, slothful, or forgetful (see 1 Ne. 18:12, 21; Alma 37:41, 43).

The compass also provided a means whereby Lehi and his family could obtain greater “understanding concerning the ways of the Lord” (1 Ne. 16:29). Thus, the primary purposes of the Liahona were to provide both direction and instruction during a long and demanding journey. The director was a physical instrument that served as an outward indicator of their inner spiritual standing before God. It worked according to the principles of faith and diligence.

Just as Lehi was blessed in ancient times, each of us in this day has been given a spiritual compass that can direct and instruct us during our mortal journey. The Holy Ghost was conferred upon you and me as we came out of the world and into the Savior’s Church through baptism and confirmation. By the authority of the holy priesthood we were confirmed as members of the Church and admonished to seek for the constant companionship of “the Spirit of truth; whom the world cannot receive, because it seeth him not, neither knoweth him: but ye know him; for he dwelleth with you, and shall be in you” (John 14:17).

As we each press forward along the pathway of life, we receive direction from the Holy Ghost just as Lehi was directed through the Liahona. “For behold, again I say unto you that if ye will enter in by the way, and receive the Holy Ghost, it will show unto you all things what ye should do” (2 Ne. 32:5).

The Holy Ghost operates in our lives precisely as the Liahona did for Lehi and his family, according to our faith and diligence and heed.

“Let virtue garnish thy thoughts unceasingly; then shall thy confidence wax strong in the presence of God. …

“The Holy Ghost shall be thy constant companion, and thy scepter an unchanging scepter of righteousness and truth” (D&C 121:45–46).

And the Holy Ghost provides for us today the means whereby we can receive, “by small and simple things” (Alma 37:6), increased understanding about the ways of the Lord: “But the Comforter, which is the Holy Ghost, whom the Father will send in my name, he shall teach you all things, and bring all things to your remembrance, whatsoever I have said unto you” (John 14:26).

When King Benjamin was waxing old, he gave his sone Mosiah several items.  One of those items was the Liahona.  He had this to say about it:

18 ..and the ball or director, which led our fathers through the wilderness, which was prepared by the hand of the Lord that thereby they might be led, every one according to the heed and diligence which they gave unto him.

17 Therefore, as they were unfaithful they did not prosper nor progress in their journey, but were driven back, and incurred the displeasure of God upon them; and therefore they were smitten with famine and sore afflictions, to stir them up in remembrance of their duty. [Mosiah 1:16-17]

After reading this, I was struck with the impression that if I feel like I am wondering through the desert, then I need to get my Liahona working again.   From these talks and scripture references, that means I need to get back to the basics.  If I concentrate on Faith, Prayer, and Scripture Study, then the Lord will help me with my personal Liahona to be led out of the desert or wilderness.  The Liahona of today is the Holy Ghost, and as we do things that interfere with its workings.  And by interfering with its workings, we incur the displeasure of God, and are smitten with sore afflictions until we are stirred up to remembrance of our duty.
 

I was then thinking of how to illustrate this to my children.  How do I show them that when we are not allowing the Holy Ghost into our lives, we become lost, and don't know where the path out of the desert is.  The thought then came to me to use a compass.  If you put a strong magnetic field by the compass, you can then make it point in the wrong direction, it won't port North.  Fighting, and the things of the world are like the magnetic field, they will interfere with the compass, and we will not know what the Lord wants us to do.
 
We as parents need to be diligent in not allowing magnets to enter our homes that will interfere with our personal Liahona.  If we do, we can find ourselves wandering through the desert or wilderness with no direction.  Or we can find that what we thought was North was being changed by a magnetic field.