Do YOU trust God?

The book of scriptures are amazing things! They are words written and handed down over centuries that were meant for us and our day. How incredible is that? How can someone not believe in God after witnessing a book such as the Bible or Book of Mormon? To me there is no way.

I love the scriptures so much and everything that they bring. I especially love the Doctrine and Covenants for they are written for our day as well! and... usually a little easier to understand.

D&C 84 has some good insight on the priesthood and those who receive it. It reads:

"And also all they who receive this priesthood receive me, saith the Lord; For he that receiveth my servantsreceiveth me; and he that receivethme receiveth my Father; and he thatreceiveth my Father receiveth my Father's kingdom; therefore all that my Father hath shall be given unto him. And this is according to the oath and covenant which belongeth to the priesthood. Therefore, all those whoreceive the priesthood, recieve this oath and covenant of my Father."

I have italicized words Sister Dew points out. In "The Beginning of Better Days: Divine Instruction to Women from The Prophet Joseph Smith" she shows how many times also all they andreceive is mentioned. She said that all they seems to be talking not only to the men, but to women as well. Then, along side that, the wordreceive usually means "to obtain", but in the scriptures it can also mean "to believe" or "to accept as truth". For example when the Lord spoke to the Nephites he said, "I came unto my own, and my own received me not".

Sister Dew then explains her feelings on the possibility of this meaning:

"As I pondered the secondary definition of receive, I found myself wondering if the promises of D&C 84:35-40 might refer not only to those who receive the priesthood through ordination but also to those who receive it by believing that the priesthood is the power of God, by accepting the manner in which the Lord has organized His kingdom, by sustaining those who hold priesthood keys, and by honoring priesthood power as the power of God. If so then is it possible that the blessings of the oath and covenant of the priesthood are efficacious in the lives of both men and women?"

I believe it is! We have access to all the blessings that the priesthood has in store for us. Even if we do not have a worthy priesthood holder in our house, that does not mean that we do not have the literal priesthood, meaning the power of God, in our home.

The men who hold the priesthood hold the keys to exercise the powers of God. They hold the keys to unlock this priesthood power. Just because us, as women, do not hold these keys does not mean we are denied access to all of the blessings it has in store for us.

There are still a lot of questions, I know. It is not a bad thing to ask questions. Questions bring knowledge and understanding. There are accounts of women and the laying on of hands in the history of the church. There are still many questions on why men can exercise these powers and women cannot. There are things we do not know and may never know in this lifetime.

It then becomes a matter of our faith. Faith in how He has organized our church and how He gives us revelation line upon line, precept upon precept. This is the way the church has been organized thus far.

The question then is: Do you trust God?

There will be times where we will be faced with questions on this very subject. The world is headed in a downward spiral and the worthy priesthood holders and virtuous women will be the only ones standing strong on the front line of the battle field. We need to know what to say and how to act when those times arise.

This is the time to prepare.

With Love,
jm


"Angels speak by the power of the Holy Ghost; wherefore, they speak the words of Christ. Wherefore, I said unto you, feast upon the words of Christ; for behold, the words of Christ will tell you all things that ye should do. Wherefore now after I have spoken these words, if ye cannot understand them it will be because ye ask not, neither do ye knock;...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 Nephi 32:3-5