on the rim

I would not be honest if I didn't post this one,  likely the last during the #LighttheWorld campaign. If you don't want to read a self indulged pity party, STOP Reading! Or skip the next paragraph. I say that I write this for myself, and that is partially true.  As I have a few phobias, it is difficult for me to reach out to others, whether I know them or not.  It is this venue that I choose to do so.  I had really worked very hard on my last post, "Is it I?"  I crafted it specifically so that as people read and thought on it, that maybe they might take that next step and pass it on.  It is that alter-ego that probably scares people from reading here.  You know, the Lib.  Believe me, I have no commercial purpose in writing on either, and so I don't need "clicks",  I just have a message that I wish would expand beyond the few that read it here, and don't know how to reach them. As we ramp up to Christmas Day, and celebrate the birth of t...

Of course those well versed in the Bible will recognize the words uttered by the apostles at the Last Supper (Matthew 26:22 KJV) .  However, my intent tonight is not to single out such murderous betrayal, rather it is to seek out the one in need.  To #LighttheWorld for an individual. No, I am not going to make it easy and name you.  After all, while it is likely directed at an individual, it is written so that any number of people could ask "Is it I".  And I would answer.  "Yes, it is" to you that I am writing. This world is a wonderful creation.  God created it for us that we may be happy.  The beauty is a gift to all, but to those with an eye of faith, we see God's hand in every single feature.  It was created with purpose, far greater than just enjoying the beauty, and understanding that is crucial for when everything isn't gumdrops and unicorns. To those that don't understand the "why" in this world, it can seem a very drab place. ...

On Sunday, December 23rd, in the chapels of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints around the world, a special meeting will be held.  You are invited! It is a special meeting, with the focus on the Savior Jesus Christ.  As we do every week, we will participate in the Sacrament, symbolizing the Last Supper, taking upon ourselves covenants, to take upon ourselves His name, to always remember him, and to keep His commandments.  In exchange, we are promised that His spirit will be with us.  This is the primary reason that we meet weekly.  Besides that sacred ordinance, or rite, we are instructed.  At times we are instructed by our leaders, but usually we are instructed by members of the congregation.  For those that do not know, on the local level, leaders of the Church are called by one having authority, and serve.  They maintain their jobs and lives, and are unpaid. Sorry about that explanatory diversion. On the 23rd, we will be havin...

December 1, the beginning of #LighttheWorld Ideally, we should continue the campaign throughout the year.  We should always look for  the opportunity to serve others.  For those who claim to be Christians, it is time to put up or shut up, we see  the world as a fallen place, and it is.  We see need everywhere.  Some wonder why a God that has the ability to heal with just a word, or a touch, would allow the sickness, the disease, the poverty to continue. Why wars go on and on.  Why people are not taken in, and cared for as the Savior said. God has granted us our greatest gift; Agency.  The ability to choose good or evil.  The ability to help, or not.  Our Father loved us so much that that is his gift, and because we would sin, part of the gift is his Only Begotten Son, Jesus Christ, who willingly laid down His life as a sacrifice for sin.  That is how important agency is to our Father. What do we do with that agency?  I ha...

I have been mulling this one since Sunday.  Not really sure how it will turn out, but here goes. On Sunday morning, I got to get up early, and head to Independence, MO, to sing with the Stake Choir in their Stake Conference.  For those that don't understand that, a Stake of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints is a collection of smaller units in a geographical area.  Twice a year, they have a conference, where the Saints are taught, and the business of the Stake is conducted.  While I am not a member of the Independence Stake, I was invited, no doubt because of my neediness to be taught, to sing with the choir.  I had mentioned in a previous post that one of the songs was "Oh What Songs of the Heart" , arranged by Dr. Mack Wilberg, director of the Tabernacle Choir and Orchestra at Temple Square (formerly the Mormon Tabernacle Choir).  I am so grateful the director took pity and invited me, it is my favorite arrangement of my favorite hymn. It...

I received an invitation from a good friend to sing in a choir for an upcoming conference.  Of course, I am kind of a closet groupie for the director and her husband, and so the answer was easy.  But then it became irresistible. My favorite arrangement of my favorite hymn in the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints' hymnal.  I missed the first rehearsal, but attended tonight, and will next week as well. I would probably walk over broken glass on top of burning coals to sing that song.  Okay, not really, but if memory serves, I think I have sang it in performances one season, my first with the Heartland of America Community Choir and Orchestra, in 2004.  Fourteen years.  Now, those who have had me as a choir director know that as we sang songs I would say this was my favorite, or that one was, but really there is only one favorite. (no don't cue the Highlander music).  Know what it is? The lyrics and music were written by a frequent duo in th...

I don't normally write here on a variety of subjects in one post, but I have a feeling to do so tonight. On Wednesday night, Sarah and I attended the Kansas City Missouri Temple of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints.  Temples are special houses of worship for the Latter Day Saints, not a place where you go to "church", we feel they are truly "The House of the Lord" (it is even written on each temple).  For more on temples, you can check out this video, or let me know of whatever questions you have, and I would be glad to do my best to answer them. https://www.mormon.org/beliefs/temples Again, no young men in white shirts will call as a response to you checking it out,  only if you want, or they are randomly in the area. Wednesday night was special as it was the last night for the former temple presidency.  Temples are presided over by Temple presidents and counselors, who are called by God through His prophet on the earth.  We have good frie...

I am writing this, and it will probably be short (though who knows) because I want to be able to sleep tonight. Planned Parenthood, with all of their genocidal tendencies, is a teetotaler compared to Kermit Gosnell, or rather DR. Kermit Gosnell. The movie points out that his trial was about the murder of a woman and children that were born alive, breathing, moving limbs, and crying, until their lives were cut short by a pair of scissors to the spinal cord.  It was not about abortion.  Having said that. The movie takes transcripts from the Grand Jury, and from the trial itself.  They tried very hard to be precise in their depiction of what was going on at Kermit's place.  By that I mean, besides the filth, cats and everything that comes with them, medical waste in the refrigerator, on the floor, in the basement.  Staff that were administering drugs with no training other than received at the "clinic".  Oh, I mean administering drugs AND performing abor...

Probably one of the greatest talks given in the General Conferences of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints was given in April of 1985.  It was the last testimony of an Apostle of the Lord Jesus Christ.  Diagnosed with pancreatic cancer the year before, it was the subject of a special family fast that he have the strength to give this conference talk, just a few days before his death.  Who is it, and why do I bring it up? Very simple.  Elder Bruce R. McConkie was the Apostle.  He was known as a master of the scriptures, having been on the committee to revamp the standard works for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints.  He was also the author of what had been considered the go to resource for doctrinal information, known as Mormon Doctrine.  He was tall, his voice was powerful, and he stuck to teaching doctrine, always heeding the whispering of the Holy Ghost.   I watched a BYU devotional where he stood up, and said he ...

I have been thinking about this ever since President Nelson of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints spoke in conference.  Whether it was the precursor to the announcement of the "home centered, church supported" format, the challenge to the sisters of the church and beyond, his impassioned plea from the Lord regarding the name of the church, or the announcement of numerous temples and renovation of the pioneer temples, I was moved by this prophet of the Living God. More than anything I heard the call to civility by many.  The rancor of this world, and this nation in particular, has reached a fever pitch, where many feel there is no way to walk back from the precipice that we are staring down.  Whenever we get to that kind of place, we have to go back to the basics, and the most basic is to focus on breathing.  As Mr. Miyagi from Karate Kid said: "Don't forget to breathe. Very important."  So, with a focus on removing the rancor and frustration at th...

Okay, not Jackson a city, it would be a street.  Today I went to church in a building that I hadn't attended in years.  On Jackson in Gladstone, or KC, whichever.  It was the Platte Woods Ward, of the Platte City Missouri Stake, of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints.  The occasion was that my grandson, Paul, was participating in his first Primary Program, and I wanted to be there to see it.  Of course my friends who are Latter Day Saints know what all that means, but for those that don't, let me explain.  Primary is where children from 3-11 attend various classes, and learn gospel principles in a format appropriate to their age.  For those old timers in the church we knew it as Jr. Sunday School.  Once a year, the Primary puts together a program for a Sacrament Meeting.  This program includes many songs, scripture quotations, and personal experiences, all blended throughout.  It is very trying for those that have to put ...

Saturday September 22, at the Historic Stone Church in Independence Missouri at 7 pm, the production Ring the Bells of Freedom will be performed.  I have written about it before, but this being the eve, I thought one more time would be appropriate. Of course, we should always be mindful of the Constitution, and the constant threat that it seems to be under.  We sometimes lose track of the "Miracle of Philadelphia" i n 1787.  Clouded over by time, and strife is the beauty of its words, and its promise. It is easy to look back with our view of today and see the flaws of those giants.  It is easy to forget the ease and freedom that we have today was paid for in blood.  In the Revolution, the War of 1812 (the 2nd Revolution) and the Civil War.  More than the United States have been blessed by this document, the world has.  Go on, tell me about Jim Crow, the Klan, and the treatment of the American Indian.  While you are at it, go on about the ...

I wonder how many people know how close the colonies were to breaking apart after the Revolution. The new nation had a tremendous debt after the Revolutionary War, and no way to pay for it.  Why?  The Articles of Confederation required an unanimous agreement to raise taxes for any purpose.  As written over at the Lib, while the former colonies were "United" in having a Congress, had rules under the Articles regarding interstate commerce, and a Treaty with Britain, the new States mostly ignored those rules, and the British, seeing the States united no more were pushing on the frontier, flagrantly violating the treaty. Debts owed by the Continental Congress to foreign powers were going unpaid, as were the payments to the soldiers that had fought the war.  There would be no rescue by the French, and probably no army to repel the British were they to decide to take their colonies back.  And make no mistake, the British were planning it. There was a call for d...

Are they contradictory statements?  No.  It is a single statement, and it is true.  This phrase came to me, more than once today, and as I have been wanting to write on it, this seemed like a good time to do so. In the Pearl of Great Price, one of the works of scripture of  The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints , is the book of Moses.  This book of scripture, received by revelation by the prophet Joseph Smith has this phrase, encapsulated in verse.  Moses 1:39 states For behold, this is my work and my glory- to bring to pass the immortality and eternal life of man. The world was created for this purpose, man was created so that the spirit children of our Father in Heaven could come down, live a mortal life in which they have no memory of their lives prior, to learn faith, obedience, repentance, and to learn to love our fellow beings as Our Father in Heaven and His Son, Jesus Christ, love us.  However, we are not perfect, and cannot ach...

Having returned from my sojourn at Scout Camp, which I have documented before, I return my focus to the #VisionofLove production.  If you are looking for a scout camp review, I may do another sometime in the future.  I am working on a website where I can sort these out a little better for access, but for now, if that is what you are looking for, just scroll on down, they are still there. Okay, tonight would have been a performance of the Vision of Love pageant in the Families are Eternal production series.  Unforeseen schedule issues have prevented that.  No worries, #VisionofLove continues, in an audio booklet format.  Tonight we spent some time recording, and I wanted to talk about a couple of the songs. Which first?  That is easy. Our Father in Heaven has a plan for us.  It was a plan that we willingly agreed to before we came to earth.  We knew the risks, we knew that God would provide a way for us to return to Him.  The Light of ...

Camp has ended for the season. An epilogue of sorts for the last several posts. One has to have a special zeal to be a 54 year old rookie staff guy.  Or maybe just crazy.  If the second, then what does it say that I reapplied for next year?  Yeah. What did I learn?  To be grateful to those friends that give you rides from the Dining Hall.  And sometimes to it.  To be grateful for a kind word at an opportune moment.  To be more adamant about needing a Driving pass. (partially kidding on that one) That sometimes your desire to help and do good is frustrated by physics, or, a lack of ice to bag. All for a pair of square coup. Yes, I put them on.  Yes, they are on the back of a lanyard where they will rarely be seen.  I have reached that point that I need to start a second string or something.  I am old. I asked the Camp Director what my odds are of being on Staff next year, if at least 50/50.  He said at least that, so ...

Feeling very odd today.  Part is that I am feeling so much better than I did the last half of the week just ended.  I am very tired, and yet here I am writing at 10:20 pm Sunday night.  If I don't know, then I don't know when I would.  And I need to do it. Last Saturday, we were given some guidance to think about for our weekend off. (24 hours).  It was pointed out that the boys in camp don't look towards the camp director  or program director in a hero worship sort of way, it is the instructors, the young man at the Trading Post, the Dining Hall staff.  Yes there are exceptions to that, (who doesn't remember Mountain Man from a few years ago announcing which quadrant could come up for seconds, at the Dining Hall, or a Program or Camp Director doing a log roll or cartwheels at a campfire? As an adult leader, I always focused on the leadership style of the program and camp director.  Do those guys make kids want to come back to Camp Geiger?...

I wanted to post a few housekeeping items and then an update. First, #VisionofLove the pageant, is not going to be held this year.  The scheduling was such that it just couldn't go.  There are plans to do some audio work, perhaps an audio book.  While the work will not be presented this year, the message is too powerful to ignore.  I have been practicing, even at camp on the music, and my experience here has helped me to more clearly see his vision of Love for me. An expression of gratitude to those who helped my mom pack, sort through stuff, and get her moved into her apartment.  And especially to Sarah. So the rookie old, fat staff guy has made it halfway.  We camped nearly 1,000 kids (or maybe more, didn't hear the exact count) the first three weeks.  It is anticipated that over the next three, starting today, there will be about 500.  So a marked difference.  This week, I think they said 150 boys, or so.  It was a slow day at t...

As I was working, I came across an old friend at Camp, and his first question to me was: What do you think about the church's move on Scouting? Of course, he asked as we were trying to get to breakfast, so I didn't have time for the discussion I would have loved to have with him.  We talked about this and that, and how the Boy Scouts are changing.  They are a target of the left, for a number of reasons.  The demand to believe in a God, the tearing down of morals, which the Oath and Law still stand, if not in defiance of the changing mores of society, then as a beacon to guide back to the path that strengthens society in so many ways. Duty to God .  Right off, this idea of a higher power, in spite of all the "enlightenment" of the day, rubs so many the wrong way.  Because if there is a God, then there is likely accountability, and consequences, at least in the Judeo-Christian world. Duty to Country .  Not to be blind to the faults of governments, the...

Probably not a long one tonight.  I am hot, I am tired, and I am ready for bed.  By the way, my preference in a choice between standing for 5 hours in the Trading Post, helping customers, or walking a lot outside in the heat, would be the standing.  But only because of the AC.  Standing on concrete doesn't do the feet any good.  No bother. Tonight, a thought occurred to me, in conjunction with my reading in the book of Judges, that it is when we cease to acknowledge that everything we have is a gift from God, and start to think that it is by our own merit that we have achieved whatever success we have, that things really start to go downhill fast, for aren't we all really at that point saying to God as Lucifer did: "I did it, so thy glory is mine"?  Before you all go Atlas on me, I would point out that those that DO, or BE, do so acknowledging those around them.  The Gulch was not built by John alone, or by Midas, or any of them, it was done togeth...