Comments on: The Jacob Project

By: roger

roger — Thu, 14 Jun 2012 17:53:47 +0000

Dang this makes me wish I wasn’t stuck in Primary all day during church… :)

By: Alex Bramwell

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By: MCQ

MCQ — Wed, 25 Apr 2012 09:35:26 +0000

I remember that exact feeling that came over me during a similar conversation with a mission companion. Thanks for reminding me Brian.

By: Brian-A

Brian-A — Wed, 25 Apr 2012 04:59:50 +0000

MCQ (#5),

I hope I didn’t oversell that conversation as more profound than it was. A few scriptures I knew listed knowledge and certainty as the outcomes of doing God’s will and of asking earnestly. So, having persistent doubts made me feel as though I wasn’t making progress. My branch president said that while he didn’t have many doubts, he knew that a lifetime of doubts await some of the righteous and sincere. He thought that wasn’t necessarily a tragedy, because however much evidence one has witnessed and whatever level of certainty one feels, belief is still a choice that one has to make. (That line, I recognized even at the time, depends critically on the definition of belief.)

I didn’t finish the conversation convinced of anything, but I remember developing a sense that things would work out. The conversation gave me confidence that I’d be judged for the choices I make rather than the testimony I receive. I felt comfort realizing that to find who and if God is might take decades. I’d be patient; everything would be fine.

By: annegb

annegb — Sun, 22 Apr 2012 15:28:07 +0000

Crap, I forgot to put something about love in there.

By: MCQ

MCQ — Sun, 22 Apr 2012 07:06:17 +0000

Get the epidural: I’m sure you mean that literally, but it could be nice as a metaphor as well.

Brian, if you care to summarize that conversation, I’d love to hear it.

By: Brian-A

Brian-A — Sat, 21 Apr 2012 16:14:45 +0000

1. To love God and to love neighbors really are the two great commandments.
2. Love almost always involves respecting the person and trying to understand the person.
3. Divine help has been needed for me to understand anyone: God, a neighbor, or myself.
4. Doubt happens, and that’s fine. (Like Jacob, I’d summarize a memorable conversation. In my case, it’d be a friendly conversation with a branch president.)
5. The development Christ-like character is both the main purpose of mortality and the reward for living the gospel.
6-7. (Two chapters reserved for an extended allegory and related commentary. Maybe something drawing on Alma 32 with the word and a tree of the love of God.)

By: annegb

annegb — Sat, 21 Apr 2012 15:32:48 +0000

In context of telling my posterity:

1. You lived before you were born, you are here for a reason and you will still be alive after your mortal body dies.

2. Life isn’t fair and your time in mortality is supposed to challenge you. It’s in the way of things. Bad times pass and so do good times. Keep this always in your mind.

3. God and His son, Jesus Christ, will have your back more than you’ll realize. Work on being close enough to Him to recognize this.

4. Reading the scriptures and praying every day seems like a pain and maybe even boring, but you’ll be glad you did.

5. Cultivate your neighbors. Family’s important, but neighbors can save your life.

6. Enjoy as much as you can of every day. It’s okay to have fun and will, in the long run, bless other’s lives as well.

7. Get the epidural.

That last one, Mcq, I’m not trying to be funny. I shove this down everybody’s throat.

By: MCQ

MCQ — Fri, 20 Apr 2012 02:11:43 +0000

Thanks Ardis, you rock.

By: Ardis E. Parshall

Ardis E. Parshall — Fri, 20 Apr 2012 01:41:14 +0000

I like this challenge … but I’ll have to think about it a while before I respond.

(I just hate great posts like this hanging around without comments as if nobody had read them, and wanted you to know I’m thinking about it.)