Today is July 4th – Independence Day. One of my top 3 favorite holidays (Thanksgiving and Christmas are my other favorites). This is the first 4th of July in 2 years that I get to actually celebrate Independence Day in the United States and be proud to be an American without people calling me ‘baby killers’ or saying something to me for being American. The past two 4th of Julys were spent in Germany. Now don’t get me wrong – I love Germany. But there’s just something special about the USA. It’s HOME.
I started thinking last night about America. About it’s history and the reason why it’s so special. Which then led my thinking to the Gospel and the Church. I thought about what we learn about America in the scriptures. Because Heavenly Father is all knowing, He knew about America and the potential it had to help bring about His work. Which is why America is the promised land.
I searched the scriptures (mainly The Book of Mormon: Another Testament of Jesus Christ) and looked up talks given by leaders of the Church. And this is what I discovered:
“The discovery of the Americas was not an accident. The event had been foreordained in the eternal councils.” – N. Eldon Tanner, If They But Serve the God of the Land
In the very beginning of The Book of Mormon, we read about the prophet Lehi and his family. They were directed by the Lord to leave Jerusalem and were led to a land of promise. The Lord tells Lehi’s faithful son, Nephi, that “inasmuch as ye shall keep my commandments, ye shall prosper, and shall be led to a land of promise; yea, even a land which I have prepared for you; yea, a land which is choice above all other lands” (1 Nephi 2: 20).
The rest of The Book of Mormon tells of what happens to Lehi, his family, and posterity. We also read of others who were led by the hand of the Lord across many waters to this promised land.
In the first book of Nephi we read of a vision that Nephi had of the promised land and of what was to happen thousands of years after his posterity had fallen away from the Gospel. Nephi writes, “And I looked and beheld a man among the Gentiles [the Gentiles refers to those on the Eastern Hemisphere], who was separated from the seed of my brethren [the seed of his brethren refers to those living in the Western Hemisphere – Lehi’s posterity] by the many waters; and I beheld the Spirit of God, that it came down and wrought upon the man; and he went forth upon the many waters, even unto the seed of my brethren, who were in the promised land” (1 Nephi 13:12). Can you figure out who Nephi was writing about? This man, from the Eastern Hemisphere, was touched by the Spirit of God and he crossed many waters till he reached the Western Hemisphere, which was already inhabited – by the seed of Lehi. This man was Christopher Columbus.
In a letter to Spanish hierarchy Columbus wrote, “Our Lord unlocked my mind, sent me upon the sea, and gave me fire for the deed. Those who heard of my emprise called it foolish, mocked me, and laughed. But who can doubt but that the Holy Ghost inspired me?” (quoted in Mark E. Peterson, The Great Prologue) I have no doubt that the Holy Ghost or Spirit of God inspired and lead Columbus to the Americas.
Nephi’s vision continues, “And it came to pass that I beheld the Spirit of God, that it wrought upon other Gentiles [still referring to those in the Eastern Hemisphere]; and they went forth out of captivity, upon the many waters” (1 Nephi 13:13). In history books we learn that after Columbus discovered America that many people left Europe and traveled to America to escape religious persecution – ‘religious captivity’ you could say.
The vision goes on, “And it came to pass that I beheld many multitudes of the Gentiles [those who were on the Eastern Hemisphere but crossed the many waters to America] upon the land of promise; and I beheld the wrath of God, that it was upon the seed of my brethren; and they were scattered before the Gentiles and were smitten” (1 Nephi 13: 14). We also learn that after the pilgrims came to America that the Indians, those who had inhabited America before it was discovered by Europe (or in other words, the seed of Lehi), were (as the scripture says) ‘scattered’ and ‘smitten’.
Here’s what I find interesting as I continued reading in 1 Nephi 13: “And it came to pass that I, Nephi, beheld that the Gentiles who had gone forth out of captivity did humble themselves before the Lord; and the power of the Lord was with them” (verse 16). The Lord blessed the people who came to America because they were humble. He was with them. This was very evident as America continued to develop and grow. “And I beheld that their mother Gentiles were gathered together upon the waters, and upon the land also, to battle against them. And I beheld that the power of God was with them, and also that the wrath of God was upon all those that were gathered together against them to battle. And I, Nephi, beheld that the Gentiles that had gone out of captivity were delivered by the power of God out of the hands of all other nations” (1 Nephi 13: 17-19). This refers to the event which led to America’s freedom. The war for our independence. Their ‘mother Gentiles’ refers to England, who, on water and on land fought against those humble pilgrims. And the power of God was with them and they were delivered by the hand of God. Happy day of independence!
God continued to be with them as they developed and built our great nation. In a revelation given to the prophet Joseph Smith the Lord tells of His hand in the development of the United States of America, “According to the laws and constitution of the people, which I have suffered to be established, and should be maintained for the rights and protection of all flesh, according to just and holy principles; That every man may act in doctrine and principle pertaining to futurity, according to the moral agency which I have given unto him, that every man may be accountable for his own sins in the day of judgment. Therefore, it is not right that any man should be in bondage one to another. And for this purpose have I established the Constitution of this land, by the hands of wise men whom I raised up unto this very purpose, and redeemed the land by the shedding of blood” (D&C 101: 77-80).
I then thought about why America is called the land of promise. What exactly is this promise that makes America so special? We learn in 2 Nephi 1: 5-7 that America “is choice above all other lands; a land which the Lord God hath covenanted with me [Lehi] should be a land for the inheritance of my seed. Yea, the Lord hath covenanted this land unto me, and to my children forever, and also all those who should be led out of other countries by the hand of the Lord…there shall none come into this land save they shall be brought by the hand of the Lord. Wherefore, this land is consecrated unto him whom he shall bring. And if it so be that they shall serve him according to the commandments which he hath given, it shall be a land of liberty unto them; wherefore, they shall never be brought down into captivity; if so it shall be because of iniquity…”
The Lord has promised those who live in America, those whom HE has brought into the land, that this land will be a land of liberty to them, that they will be free from bondage. HOWEVER, there is a condition to this promise. Those who live there ‘shall serve HIM’ and keep HIS commandments, THEN will this land be a land of freedom. And IF they are brought into captivity it will be because of iniquity, of not serving God or keeping His commandments.
Later in The Book of Mormon we read of another people who were brought by the hand of God to America. They were told that “this is a choice land, and whatsoever nation shall possess it shall be free from bondage, and from captivity, and from all other nations under heaven, if they will but serve the God of the land, who is Jesus Christ…” (Ether 2:12) Here we learn that the god we are to serve is Jesus Christ.
God promised Lehi and his family that “this land shall be a land of liberty unto the Gentiles, and there shall be no kings upon the land, who shall raise up unto the Gentiles. And I will fortify this land against all other nations. And he that fighteth against Zion shall perish, saith God. For he that raiseth up a king against me shall perish, for I, the Lord, the king of heaven, will be their king, and I will be a light unto them forever, that hear my words. Wherefore, I will consecrate this land unto thy seed. And them who shall be numbered among they seed, forever, for the land of their inheritance for it is a choice land, saith God unto me, above all other lands, wherefore I will have all men that dwell thereon that they shall worship me, saith God” (2 Nephi 10:11-14, 19).
As I read and pondered on the promise that we have from God, that if we keep His commandments and worship Him, that we will be free. I thought about how that almost seems like we don’t have a choice in the matter. But then I remembered that God has given us the priceless gift of free agency – the ability to choose for ourselves what we will do. I remembered the scripture verse in 2 Nephi 2:27 where we learn, “Wherefore, men are free according to the flesh; and all things are given them which are expedient unto men, and they are free to choose liberty and eternal life, through the great Mediator of all men, or to choose captivity and death, according to the captivity and power of the devil; for he seeketh that all men might be miserable like unto himself.” It’s interesting, when WE choose to keep the commandments of God we are free. Not only are we free from other nations but we are free from our sins. The verse also tells us that when WE choose NOT to keep the commandments that we will be in captivity. It may not be in captivity of another nation at this time, but we are captive to our sins.
As I continued to search the scriptures I found a warning given to us if we choose not to keep the commandments: “ But behold, when the time cometh that they shall dwindle in unbelief, after they have received so great blessings from the hand of the Lord – having a knowledge of the creation of the earth, and all men, knowing the great and marvelous works of the Lord from the creation of the world; having power given them to do all things by faith; having all the commandments from the beginning, and having been brought by his infinite goodness into this precious land of promise – behold, I saw, if the day shall come that they will reject the Holy One of Israel, the true Messiah, their Redeemer and their God, behold, the judgments of him that is just shall rest upon them. Yea, he will bring other nations unto them, and he will give unto them power, and he will take away from them the lands of their possessions, and he will cause them to be scattered and smitten” (2 Nephi 1: 10-11). The same thing that happened to the seed of Lehi, those who possessed the land before Columbus came to America, will happen to us if we lose our faith. If we reject our Savior, Jesus Christ, and choose not to keep His commandments, we will be ‘scattered’ and ‘smitten’. That’s a scary thought!
Today in church we sang, The Star-Spangled Banner. Verse 3 reads, “Oh, thus be it ever, when free men shall stand between their loved homes and the war’s desolation! Blest with vict’ry and peace, may the heav’n-rescued land praise the Pow’r that hath made and preserved us a nation! Then conquer we must, when our cause it is just, and this be our motto: “In God is our trust!” And the star-spangled banner in triumph shall wave o’er the land of the free and the home of the brave!”
This 4th of July, Independence Day, I am more grateful than ever to live in this promised land. I hope that every day I can put my trust in God and keep His commandments so that I may be free from bondage and enjoy the blessing that come from living in the USA!
Sunday, July 4, 2010
Wednesday, June 30, 2010
BACKSTREETS BACK ALRIGHT!
Once upon a time a beautiful young lady was working at her favorite place in the world: American Eagle. On one particular afternoon one of her managers mentioned that an amazing group of male singers were going to have a concert in Salt Lake City. The beautiful young lady and a co-worker, Javin, looked at each other and knew that they would go to this concert together. Another co-worked, Brooke, joined the group and the beautiful young lady got them all tickets to this exciting concert. After three months of impatiently waiting, the three AE employees drove to Salt Lake City to see the long awaited concert...
After 30 long and painful minutes, the opening act (a DJ playing a mix) told them that after another 30 minutes the group of male singers would start their concert. It was the longest hour of the beautiful young lady's life.
Finally, after months, hours, minutes, and seconds of waiting....they finally made their appearance:
That's right! The beautiful young lady and her AE co-workers went to a BACKSTREET BOYS CONCERT!
The Call
More Than That
Larger Than Life
I Want It That Way
So after an evening of dinner, witnessing an amazing concert (which involved the beautiful young lady singing, dancing, jumping up and down, and screaming with excitement), spending time with work friends, and driving back to Provo (which involved the beautiful young lady singing Celine Dion songs into her Wendy's cup), the beautiful young lady went to sleep....and for the next few days woke to the song "Backstreets Back" playing in her head :)
"Now let me show you the shape of my heart..."
After 30 long and painful minutes, the opening act (a DJ playing a mix) told them that after another 30 minutes the group of male singers would start their concert. It was the longest hour of the beautiful young lady's life.
Finally, after months, hours, minutes, and seconds of waiting....they finally made their appearance:
That's right! The beautiful young lady and her AE co-workers went to a BACKSTREET BOYS CONCERT!
The Call
More Than That
Larger Than Life
I Want It That Way
So after an evening of dinner, witnessing an amazing concert (which involved the beautiful young lady singing, dancing, jumping up and down, and screaming with excitement), spending time with work friends, and driving back to Provo (which involved the beautiful young lady singing Celine Dion songs into her Wendy's cup), the beautiful young lady went to sleep....and for the next few days woke to the song "Backstreets Back" playing in her head :)
"Now let me show you the shape of my heart..."
Friday, June 25, 2010
The Doty
I found this article on msn.com - the complete copy of the article can be found at this site: http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/37927284/?gt1=43001
Lake Michigan shipwreck found after 112 years
By Dinesh Ramde
updated 11:58 a.m. MT, Fri., June 25, 2010
MILWAUKEE - A great wooden steamship that sank more than a century ago in a violent Lake Michigan storm has been found off the Milwaukee-area shoreline, and divers say the intact vessel appears to have been perfectly preserved by the cold fresh waters.
The Doty was carrying a cargo of corn from South Chicago to Ontario, Canada in October 1898 when it sailed into a terrible storm, Baillod said. Along with snow and sleet, there were heavy winds that whipped up waves of up to 30 feet.
The Doty should have been able to handle the weather. The ship was only five years old, and the 300-foot wooden behemoth's hull was reinforced with steel arches.
But it was towing a small schooner, the Olive Jeanette, which began to founder in the storm after the tow line apparently snapped, Baillod said. The Doty probably sank when it came to the schooner's aid. All 17 of its crew members died, along with the ship's cats, Dewey and Watson.
Divers found the ship upright and intact, settled into the clay at the lake's bottom. Even the ship's cargo of corn was still in its hold.
The Doty is so well-preserved because it's in a cold, freshwater lake. It's also far enough below the surface that storms don't affect it.
There are no plans to raise the Doty, which is now the property of the state of Wisconsin. The ship will remain preserved indefinitely where it is, rather than exposing it to air that would cause it to rot away within a few years, Baillod said.
Lake Michigan shipwreck found after 112 years
By Dinesh Ramde
updated 11:58 a.m. MT, Fri., June 25, 2010
MILWAUKEE - A great wooden steamship that sank more than a century ago in a violent Lake Michigan storm has been found off the Milwaukee-area shoreline, and divers say the intact vessel appears to have been perfectly preserved by the cold fresh waters.
The Doty was carrying a cargo of corn from South Chicago to Ontario, Canada in October 1898 when it sailed into a terrible storm, Baillod said. Along with snow and sleet, there were heavy winds that whipped up waves of up to 30 feet.
The Doty should have been able to handle the weather. The ship was only five years old, and the 300-foot wooden behemoth's hull was reinforced with steel arches.
But it was towing a small schooner, the Olive Jeanette, which began to founder in the storm after the tow line apparently snapped, Baillod said. The Doty probably sank when it came to the schooner's aid. All 17 of its crew members died, along with the ship's cats, Dewey and Watson.
Divers found the ship upright and intact, settled into the clay at the lake's bottom. Even the ship's cargo of corn was still in its hold.
The Doty is so well-preserved because it's in a cold, freshwater lake. It's also far enough below the surface that storms don't affect it.
There are no plans to raise the Doty, which is now the property of the state of Wisconsin. The ship will remain preserved indefinitely where it is, rather than exposing it to air that would cause it to rot away within a few years, Baillod said.
Thursday, June 17, 2010
one love 2 love - one life 2 live
So I’ve been thinking about 3 things in particular lately: (and I promise that they do connect)
1. marriage
2. the past 5 years
3. the next 5 years
I started thinking about marriage when I found out on facebook that my ex is engaged. To be married. ANYWAY - Angela and I were talking about marriage and how grateful we are that we aren’t married yet. Don’t get me wrong, I do want to get married. But I would have never been able to do what I’ve done in my life if I had been married. And as I think about it – once I get married, I plan on staying married for ETERNITY. And that’s a LONG, LONG time. And so then I thought to myself, Rach you aren’t married, so what can you do and what are you going to do before you do get married and can’t do whatever YOU want anymore?
Which brings me to the second thing that I’ve been thinking about. It’s now June 2010. Five years ago, in June of 2005, I graduated from Redmond High School. And as I thought about what I would do and who I would be in the five years after high school I definitely had other ideas of what would happen. I thought that I would be married and that I’d have had a kid and I would be a wife and a mother. Well, sorry to disappoint my past self but that isn’t what Heavenly Father had in the cards for me and my life. I look at facebook and see these people I went to high school with, they have their degrees and have these important jobs and I feel like they’ve accomplished a lot with their lives. And when I think about what I’ve done in the past 5 years, I don’t feel like I’ve done as much as I could have or accomplished as much as I should have.
In the past 5 years I’ve:
- attended BYU-Idaho for 2 years and gotten my associates degree
- worked at 4 different clothing stores: Victoria's Secret, GAP, Laura Victoria, American Eagle Outfitters
- served an 18 month mission for the Church which included me:
o living in western Germany for 16 months
o learning to speak German
- and after being home from Germany for 10 months, I’ve:
o gotten my job back at American Eagle
o moved to Utah
o completed a semester at LDS Business College
o and I can still speak, read, and understand German
I remember several years ago writting down 3 life-long goals that I had for myself:
1. serve a mission (at the time I wrote that thinking that I would serve a mission someday when I was old, like with my husband or something)
2. learn to speak another language (and not just study it like in school but actually be able to speak and communicate)
3. live in a foreign country
WELL in the past 5 years I've done all of that! So this brings me to the third thing: what am I going to do in the NEXT 5 years?
To begin, I thought it might be a good idea to graduate from a university. I think its about time I get it together and decide what I want to do and study. I’m thinking that I want to be going to Utah Valley University and that I want to graduate with a bachelors in marketing. I also miss Germany a LOT and just being in a foreign country. So I’m thinking that I need to be doing some traveling. I’ll probably do a study abroad or something along those lines. ALSO thinking that I may want to get an MBA. We’ll have to see about that though because I hate school. But who knows, maybe when I’m studying something that I love, I might actually change my mind and like school.
I heard once that if you don't take the time to sit down and write out some goals, that you won't accomplish as much. So this is me taking the time to sit down and type out some goals for my life. Let's see what the next 5 years has in store for me!
1. marriage
2. the past 5 years
3. the next 5 years
I started thinking about marriage when I found out on facebook that my ex is engaged. To be married. ANYWAY - Angela and I were talking about marriage and how grateful we are that we aren’t married yet. Don’t get me wrong, I do want to get married. But I would have never been able to do what I’ve done in my life if I had been married. And as I think about it – once I get married, I plan on staying married for ETERNITY. And that’s a LONG, LONG time. And so then I thought to myself, Rach you aren’t married, so what can you do and what are you going to do before you do get married and can’t do whatever YOU want anymore?
Which brings me to the second thing that I’ve been thinking about. It’s now June 2010. Five years ago, in June of 2005, I graduated from Redmond High School. And as I thought about what I would do and who I would be in the five years after high school I definitely had other ideas of what would happen. I thought that I would be married and that I’d have had a kid and I would be a wife and a mother. Well, sorry to disappoint my past self but that isn’t what Heavenly Father had in the cards for me and my life. I look at facebook and see these people I went to high school with, they have their degrees and have these important jobs and I feel like they’ve accomplished a lot with their lives. And when I think about what I’ve done in the past 5 years, I don’t feel like I’ve done as much as I could have or accomplished as much as I should have.
In the past 5 years I’ve:
- attended BYU-Idaho for 2 years and gotten my associates degree
- worked at 4 different clothing stores: Victoria's Secret, GAP, Laura Victoria, American Eagle Outfitters
- served an 18 month mission for the Church which included me:
o living in western Germany for 16 months
o learning to speak German
- and after being home from Germany for 10 months, I’ve:
o gotten my job back at American Eagle
o moved to Utah
o completed a semester at LDS Business College
o and I can still speak, read, and understand German
I remember several years ago writting down 3 life-long goals that I had for myself:
1. serve a mission (at the time I wrote that thinking that I would serve a mission someday when I was old, like with my husband or something)
2. learn to speak another language (and not just study it like in school but actually be able to speak and communicate)
3. live in a foreign country
WELL in the past 5 years I've done all of that! So this brings me to the third thing: what am I going to do in the NEXT 5 years?
To begin, I thought it might be a good idea to graduate from a university. I think its about time I get it together and decide what I want to do and study. I’m thinking that I want to be going to Utah Valley University and that I want to graduate with a bachelors in marketing. I also miss Germany a LOT and just being in a foreign country. So I’m thinking that I need to be doing some traveling. I’ll probably do a study abroad or something along those lines. ALSO thinking that I may want to get an MBA. We’ll have to see about that though because I hate school. But who knows, maybe when I’m studying something that I love, I might actually change my mind and like school.
I heard once that if you don't take the time to sit down and write out some goals, that you won't accomplish as much. So this is me taking the time to sit down and type out some goals for my life. Let's see what the next 5 years has in store for me!
Sunday, June 6, 2010
Memorial Day and Keri's Birthday!
Memorial Day - us girls drove up Provo Cannon to hang out with some friends. Since Keri is in Berlin and couldn't be with us, we blasted Justin Bieber, sang and danced along and wished she was with us.
"My first love broke my heart for the first time. And I was like: Baby, baby, baby ohhh. Like baby, baby, baby noo. Like baby, baby, baby ohh. I thought you'd always be mine"
Keri's birthday was on the 2nd - and since she's currently on another continent and we couldn't celebrate with her, we made a birthday sign, took a few pictures, and emailed them to her. Alles gute zum Geburtstag Keri! We love and miss you!!
"My first love broke my heart for the first time. And I was like: Baby, baby, baby ohhh. Like baby, baby, baby noo. Like baby, baby, baby ohh. I thought you'd always be mine"
Keri's birthday was on the 2nd - and since she's currently on another continent and we couldn't celebrate with her, we made a birthday sign, took a few pictures, and emailed them to her. Alles gute zum Geburtstag Keri! We love and miss you!!
Living my life with AE employees...outside work
I LOVE my job most of the time. There are times when working retail isn't easy or fun. Mostly because people are stupid.
BUT what makes working at THIS AE so enjoyable are the people I work with. There are about 10 of us who work regularly. They make coming into work so much easier because they are my friends! A few weekends ago we decided to do something together OUTSIDE the store!
We roasted marshmallows, ate lots of gummy bears, and played Truth or Dare!
Bryce, Brooke, Whitney, and me!
(up - Rachel 1 and Rachel 2 [but now I'm just called Doty])
(up-right - Me and Devin)
(right - Brooke and me)
BUT what makes working at THIS AE so enjoyable are the people I work with. There are about 10 of us who work regularly. They make coming into work so much easier because they are my friends! A few weekends ago we decided to do something together OUTSIDE the store!
We roasted marshmallows, ate lots of gummy bears, and played Truth or Dare!
Bryce, Brooke, Whitney, and me!
(up - Rachel 1 and Rachel 2 [but now I'm just called Doty])
(up-right - Me and Devin)
(right - Brooke and me)
They should really make that more clear...
So my brother and I were shopping at Smiths grocery store and I saw this sign and THOUGHT it read: 4/$1 - meaning 4 watermelons for one dollar - when really the sign says 4lb/$1. So you can imagine my reaction: "oh my gosh Al look! 4 watermelons for a dollar!" - to which he responded: "Rach, it's 4lbs for a dollar. Not 4 watermelons for a dollar." I was very disappointed. They should really make that more clear on the sign...
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