King Follet Sermon

Elder King Follet had been crushed

The congregation was hushed

With prayers to be verified

Each hoped to be edified

On this grave subject of death

The Prophet Joseph was led

And he offered up his own thoughts

Of all those present... none would forget!

"In the morn of creation"....

(He began with earth's formation

Wanting to say things just right...

And not lead away from light.)

"The beasts could eat, drink, and sleep

But, not comprehend what is deep;

Yet, man has been given a heart

To comprehend what heaven imparts."

As it is with faith, visions appear.

He turned  their minds to lofty spheres,

"Have you sought God and communed?

To this desire may your heart be tuned

For I have communed, heard, and seen

The living God in being

All we know of life eternal

Comes from Him supernal!"

"Of what I can comprehend

May I unto you extend?

God once was as we are now

And of this truth, I avow

Adam, made in His own image

Was prepared for life's pilgrimage

We too have been prepared for our day

As God, Himself, started this way!"

"May I take the veil away

And teach of Him today?

The head God brought forth other God's

Though translations are at odds.

God had once been like yourself.

Now the Father hath power himself.

The Savior will help us to reprise

Through degrees of grace to arise!"

"I know of whom we all belong

I can prove the world is wrong

For there are errors in God's book

As translators misnamed and mistook

One says Jacob, one says James...

Gone the message of how God saves

But through the Godhead we've a first hand book

That teaches us how to discern and look."

"Silence your hands and your voices

He who may hear rejoices

To the lawyers who but flutter

We laugh at what they utter

And then console those who mourn

Unto a hope that's been reborn

Jesus has tread in God's own tracks

And has taught us, perfectly, the grand way back."

"When Jesus spoke of His death

Something He said hints of depth

'As the Father hath power...

Even hath the Son power'

To lay down life and then rise

Our Father had known demise!

Of this the Bible does not dispute

Who, then, will believe or dare to refute?"

"Those live's laid down and dissolved

Must repent and be absolved.

Though we're to be immortal

There is more- to rise eternal!

God's kingdom requires man's humbling

He too went through great fear and trembling

Let us avoid everlasting burning

And keep our covenants... continually learning"

"When you climb up a long ladder

You rise with strength you have gathered.

Ever you arrive but step by step.

Then to slip quickly as you misstep.

Now, we have learned of exaltation-

How to build upon a sound foundation.

Mortality awaits for our education.

Ever there are times of self-evaluation."

"We have learn of God's very own character

As the heavens reveal, with faith we factor.

The Father had a grand council

To create, plan, and excel.

From the element, serials-

They organized materials.

Was earth once made of nothing?

Even we are made of something!"

"The plan for mankind was laid.

Out of earth, all life was made.

With a tabernacle of clay

Adam, the first man gave way.

His spirit was placed inside.

In the garden, he did reside.

He transgressed, fell- now we all sin

But through Christ, our souls we will win."

"Intelligence comprehends

What has beginning too must end.

But our spirits, they have neither

And we will go on forever.

The Holy Ghost knows of all

From the Father, for the long haul;

To help us climb life's long ladder

To be happier and not sadder."

"Our eternal life will be good

I know I will taste its sweet fruit!

To have glory, truth, knowledge, light

Power, priesthood, and keen insight-

I proclaim this with boldness.

May each spirit find their access

And of those who have passed beyond the veil

I will help them so they will not fail."

"We're either in grace or dread,

Spiritually alive or dead,

With God or separated,

Lonely or family related,

Either allowed or are barred.

Physically or spiritually scarred

As we are of intelligence

We will continue to learn more hence."

"When our friend was buried alive

We knew there was no way to survive.

Gravely... we ponder mortality

And wish for keen answers to see.

What can we do now that he has passed?

Give him something supernal that lasts!

We will baptize all his family dead

And seal them together for what lies ahead."

... shall comment on the very first Hebrew word
in the Bible; I will make a comment on the very
first sentence of the history of creation in the
Bible—Berosheit. I want to analyze the word.
Baith—in, by, through, and everything else.
Roch—the head, Sheit—grammatical termination.
When the inspired man wrote it, he did not put
the baith there. An old Jew without any authority
added the word; he thought it too bad to begin to
talk about the head! It read first, "The head one
of the Gods brought forth the Gods." That is the
true meaning of the words. Baurau signifies to
bring forth. If you do not believe it, you do
not believe the learned man of God. Learned men
can teach you no more than what I have told you.
Thus the head God brought forth the Gods in the grand council.
Joseph Smith, "King Follet Sermon."
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On the other hand, the whole design
of the gospel is to lead us onward
and upward to greater achievement,
even, eventually, to godhood. This
great possibility was enunciated by
the Prophet Joseph Smith in the
King Follet sermon (see Teachings of the
Prophet Joseph Smith,
pp. 342–62; and emphasized by
President Lorenzo Snow. It is this grand
and incomparable concept: As God now is,
man may become! (See The Teachings of
Lorenzo Snow, comp. Clyde J. Williams,
Salt Lake City: Bookcraft, 1984, p. 1.)

Our enemies have criticized us for believing
in this. Our reply is that this lofty concept
in no way diminishes God the Eternal Father.
He is the Almighty. He is the Creator and
Governor of the universe. He is the
greatest of all and will always be so.
But just as any earthly father wishes for
his sons and daughters every success in life,
so I believe our Father in Heaven wishes for
his children that they might approach him in
stature and stand beside him resplendent in
godly strength and wisdom.

Gordon B. Hinckley, “Don’t Drop the Ball,”
Ensign, Nov 1994, 46

Do not drop the ball

Consider those who've passed

Give to them your all

Give them the gift that lasts

Lifting, Bending, and Twisting

Lifting, bending, and twisting
Every day in their homes
Each young mother's existing
To find for what she combs

Under the couch and loveseat
Are toys and books and things
Wherever the children meet
With them there's much each brings

Perhaps one day she can rest
While the children remain calm
That even though they are at breast
There's nothing in her palm

As she captures the moment
She sees her best reward
Her precious children are lent
And she is the steward

This world busily demands
And children know this too
Yet, a mother understands
And knows just what to do

There's no more worthy role
Than that of motherhood
And though it takes its toll
She'd striving as she should

She relies on her instincts
As each child's so diff'rent
Though some daily tasks may stink
At home she is content

A child's in need of well-being
While in the formative years
And thus must have a routine
Or are oft found in tears

And so there's times of frustration
As things are overlooked
She makes a correlation
And knows she's overbooked

Each family needs unstructured time
When they can laugh, talk, and play
That's when bonding becomes prime
And shining joys display

Every good thing is brought to pass
By small and simple things
Like moments in photograph
Her legacy is our heart strings

So when a daughter of God's giv'n
A day to spend her way
All her thoughts while away she's liv'n
Are of them- thus, she prays

This is how the church is preserved
And we must give her aid
For while her role is observed
Firm foundations are laid

What's the best use of her spare time?
That she draw from the well
And, that she enrich her life
In what she may excel

M. Russell Ballard
A Daughter of God
May Ensign 2008

Moving Forward

Moving forward
Looking backward
We must all press on

Reaching skyward
Searching inward
Doing as the Son

Time is moving
We're not loosing
We know who will win

We are hoping
And believing
As we shift from sin
With new faith within

A Thousand Drops of Blood

A thousand drops of blood
Once had been shed for me
To puddle and then flood
From my iniquity

Like the vinyard's winepress
The Savior bled for me
I caused Him great distress
T'was terrible, indeed

Some day may I see Him
And feel His love for me
I'll see His pierced bosom
Too, His prints marked plainly

I, in perfect likeness
While His scars still remain
He in fullest brightness
Will heal me of what is lame

A thousand tears of joy
Cannot be enough
For all I can enjoy
The greatest of which is love

When I Saw the Skies

When I saw the skies all a smoke
As the surrounding hills did char
I wish now that in me it had awoke
What but now has gone from me afar

Like words as a dream that has passed
Gone my fleeting memory
Until some day when upon it I cast
As part of my history

All we learn on earth will come back
Restored- and for evermore
Though, for now it's something we lack
We can train and extend and store

Safety in Counsel

A new prophet was put in today
We stood with raised hand for the record
In an orderly and patterned way
We sustained our new prophet adored

From the prophet's mouth the Lord calls us
With words of judgment and of mercy
He would to lead us to life's riches
Where there's glory and honor to see

The Savior offers us protection
He would that we accept His warnings
And ponder them with introspection
For if we don't there will be mournings

As a hen gathereth her chickens
To protect them from what would devour
The counsel of the prophet thickens
As his warnings to safety empower
-----------------------------------------
In the fall of 1838
The tensions ran high in Missouri
The Prophet Joseph Smith told the Saints
To seek protection from men's fury

In Far West refugees would be received
But, Brother Haun did not deliver
And his small settlement did not leave
Thus, at Haun's Mill there was massacre

For the first time in church history
The Prophet could not keep the Saints safe
They were in harms way for misery
T'was because of just one man's lack of faith
-----------------------------------------
In our own time we've been warned from sin
And where to find safety from sorrow
When warnings are repeated often
Watch and be ready for the morrow

The law of witnesses has been cast
When Prophets words seem repetitive
As one Prophet quotes a Prophet past
Our attention should be riveted

May our hearts be filled with gratitude
While we look to the path of safety
And, may we not look for latitude
Where e'er the prophets speaks may faith be

We're squaring with what we want to do
If we think his words are just advice
We may slacken and not follow through
But, we'll soon see God's counsel is wise

Some may consider God's word faulty
That there might be another motive
They mock and deride, proclaiming falsely
When, what they should be thinking is "what if?"
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In the Book of Mormon- Korihor
Taught that church leaders sought for bondage
That they might glut on members labors
As they take away rights and privilege

This man argued for independence
Which misrepresents reality
For he sought power to influence
With his own rules for legality
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To choose to take prophetic counsel
Changes the very ground where we stand
As the waters gather up and pool
Those obedient find safety at hand

The more they heard, the more they scoffed
The best time to have helped Noah soon passed
Perhaps on the ark they'd be aloft
If they'd listened the first time he asked
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Oft times when one chooses to delay
The first thing that's forgotten is prayer
Confirmation takes us from harms way
And places us safely into God's care

In an early account of Lehi's
He was warned that his family must leave
Those who pray can know where safety lies
If they but ask, then they will receive
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To some are given the priesthood keys
With them the Lord makes stakes a safe place
They each bear responsibilities
To warn the Saints of what they must face

We then possess capability
To listen, give heed and then to act
With fervent prayer there's ability
Then with a lifeline, we'll stay intact

Those with ears have the faith to obey
As they learn to avoid grave danger
They learn to face fear and not dismay
For revelation's not a stranger
----------------------------------------------
Just like Thomas B. Marshal's accounts fooled
In our day, some elect are deceived
For they feel "they know best" when counseled
And self-exalt in their own belief

God offers counsel and it's for all
We're as an instrument in his hands
When we hear warnings- we'll sound His call
"Pray", we'll advise, "Then one understands"
----------------------------------------
Though sweet to lead someone to safety
Sometimes the counsel is hard to do
This Reddick Allred found it to be
As a storm made it life threatening too

He with supplies waited through the storm
Lest the Martin company should die
While snow blizzard's entombment did form
He refused to budge, though some said good-bye

As weeks had passed they said to give up
They took their supplies, they had lost faith
They turned back more wagons come to help
But, Allred strongly felt he should wait

One day, as he watched his frozen breath
The destitute company arrived
Dozens had suffered and froze to death
Because of this man the rest survived
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Sometimes we don't understand counsel
Or think it does not apply to us
Let's think of it as a sand sample
When we shake it the gold flakes show thus

The Lord's priesthood keys are on the earth
We are so blessed to know where to look
To find the things that are of the most worth
It just depends on the way faith's shook

Safety in Counsel
President Henry B. Eyring
Liahona, June 2008 pg 2-7

Matt. 23: 37
37 O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, thou that
killest the prophets, and stonest them
which are sent unto thee, how often
would I have gathered thy children together,
even as a hen gathereth her chickens
under her wings, and ye would not!

I turned a page by accident and turned from
writing a poem from another talk. the first stanza
is from one of the conference talks. perhaps you
recognize it?...Ronald A. Rasband

The Holy Ghost

The holy ghost-
The best of all friends
Is a prized gift
As a Godhead descends

It has power
To help me stay clean
It's spirits felt
But it is never seen

It's words are heard
As a still small voice
It warms my heart
To help me make a choice

It cannot stay
When I cross to sin
I soon turn back
Feeling empty within

This is my prayer
That the Holy Ghost
Teach me of all
That I need the most

To light my mind
And to warn me too
To guide my steps
Till my days are through

A hundred years
Would not be too long
To have this host
And to endure strong