"Freely ye have received, freely give." -Matthew 10:8
(Letters 1 – 11) https://founders.archives.gov/documents/Jefferson/01-01-02-0001 A brief letter at age 16 where Thomas Jefferson makes a very wise decision to go off to school to reduce on social calls to his present residence, and also decrease on the cost of attending to such guests. He seeks the council of one of his guardians, John Harvie, …
Continue reading “Notes on Letters from Jan 1760 to May 1766”
Isaiah 65 The rejection of Israel and the establishment of a Millennial Zion are juxtaposed in these verses. In the contemplation of why God rejects Israel, there is the discovery of temptations and tendencies that are common to discipleship, and which may be experience perhaps no other way. A common critique of the Scribes and …
Continue reading “The Lord God Shall… Call His Servants By Another Name”
Isaiah 50, see also 2 Nephi 7 Side details tell stories in themselves: the heavens are clothed with sackcloth? (See verse 3) We travel in space now. We send rovers to Mars. Yet what, if we could see it, is really being kept from our view? How do I “encompass myself about in sparks” instead …
Isaiah 36 & 37 Compared to the previous sections, these next two chapters are more of a historical read about Hezekiah, king of Judah, against the Assyrian empire. The premise upon which the representative from the King of Assyria came up to Judah was two fold: Assyria was mightier than Egypt now. Judah could not …
Continue reading “What Confidence Is This Wherein Thou Trustest?”
3 Nephi 14:24-27 (See also Matthew 7:24-27) In this simple comparison of persons is the powerful illustration of one absolute reality: Rains will fall, Floods will come, and winds will blow! In other words, there will be opposition regardless of your spiritual status in life. However, it is the outcome of such opposition that will …
Helaman 3 In verse 15, amidst accounts of the growth and prosperity of the Nephite nation we get this short little verse that points out that the Nephites were they that kept records of all sorts. This little bit of insight comes to me at a time, when I’ve been contemplating records, and record-keeping. It …