108: Does Your House of Worship Now Seem Lonely?
Does your house of worship now seem lonely?
Have you come to doubt God’s Spirit’s there?
Does it seem as if the preacher’s only
Working for a wage and what he wears?
Is your present life awash in trouble,
Fearing both this crisis and the next?
Do you fear you’re living in a bubble
That’s about to burst around your neck?
Has your faith become a thing remembered?
Have you lost your compass to the world?
Is your trust in God a dying ember?
Is your patriot’s heart a flag that’s furled?
Come to us and learn of restoration,
Foretold by holy prophets so long past.
Learn the laws you need to gain salvation.
Gain the joy of Christ which truly lasts.
(c) servingjesuspoetry.com
All non-commercial usage allowed.
Isaiah 2:2-3
2. “And it shall come to pass in the last days, that the mountain of the Lord’s house shall be established in the top of the mountains, and shall be exalted above the hills; and all nations shall flow unto it.
3. "And many people shall go and say, Come ye, and let us go up to the mountain of the Lord, to the house of the God of Jacob; and he will teach us of his ways, and we will walk in his paths: for out of Zion shall go forth the law, and the word of the Lord from Jerusalem."
Acts 3:18-21
"But those things, which God before had shewed by the mouth of all his prophets, that Christ should suffer, he hath so fulfilled.
Repent ye therefore, and be converted, that your sins may be blotted out, when the times of refreshing shall come from the presence of the Lord;
And he shall send Jesus Christ, which before was preached unto you:
Whom the heaven must receive until the times of restitution of all things, which God hath spoken by the mouth of all his holy prophets since the world began."
Ephesians 1:10
“That in the dispensation of the fulness of times he might gather together in one all things in Christ, both which are in heaven, and which are on earth; even in him”
Revelations 14:6
“And I saw another angel fly in the midst of heaven, having the everlasting gospel to preach unto them that dwell on the earth, and to every nation, and kindred, and tongue, and people,”
Doctrine and Covenants 1:17-23
Wherefore, I the Lord, knowing the calamity which should come upon the inhabitants of the earth, called upon my servant Joseph Smith, Jun., and spake unto him from heaven, and gave him commandments;
And also gave commandments to others, that they should proclaim these things unto the world; and all this that it might be fulfilled, which was written by the prophets--
The weak things of the world shall come forth and break down the mighty and strong ones, that man should not counsel his fellow man, neither trust in the arm of flesh--
But that every man might speak in the name of God the Lord, even the Savior of the world;
That faith also might increase in the earth;
That mine everlasting covenant might be established;
That the fulness of my gospel might be proclaimed by the weak and the simple unto the ends of the world, and before kings and rulers.”
COMMENT
This was largely received in 2014...and lost. I just discovered it on a jump drive while skimming old files. I do recall, now that I have found it again, that the key was a curiosity as to pastoral compensation for sectarian ministers--something about which Latter-day Saints have no experience.
The Church of Latter-day Saints "all volunteer" organization is, frankly, unique. How strange, then, that we keep expanding all over the globe, while many "mainstream" churches can neither staff their "ministries" (even with rather lucrative compensation packages) nor fill their houses of worship with congregants.
Now, Elders and Sisters, before you engage in "wouldn't it be nice" thinking, two scriptures (out of many on the subject) merit mention: D&C 6:7 "...he who has eternal life is rich" and 2 Nephi 26:31: "But the laborer in Zion shall labor for Zion; for if they labor for money they shall perish." (Let us never forget that Lord Jesus had not "where to lay his head.")
But, more importantly, here and now the faithful striving to love the Lord (and all others) and obey God's commandments, receive tangible, priceless blessings, gifts, experiences, and rewards. While such marvels may not be countable in the "coin of the realm", they are potent, even overwhelming at times, assurances of God's love for us.
Does your house of worship now seem lonely?
Have you come to doubt God’s Spirit’s there?
Does it seem as if the preacher’s only
Working for a wage and what he wears?
Is your present life awash in trouble,
Fearing both this crisis and the next?
Do you fear you’re living in a bubble
That’s about to burst around your neck?
Has your faith become a thing remembered?
Have you lost your compass to the world?
Is your trust in God a dying ember?
Is your patriot’s heart a flag that’s furled?
Come to us and learn of restoration,
Foretold by holy prophets so long past.
Learn the laws you need to gain salvation.
Gain the joy of Christ which truly lasts.
(c) servingjesuspoetry.com
All non-commercial usage allowed.
Isaiah 2:2-3
2. “And it shall come to pass in the last days, that the mountain of the Lord’s house shall be established in the top of the mountains, and shall be exalted above the hills; and all nations shall flow unto it.
3. "And many people shall go and say, Come ye, and let us go up to the mountain of the Lord, to the house of the God of Jacob; and he will teach us of his ways, and we will walk in his paths: for out of Zion shall go forth the law, and the word of the Lord from Jerusalem."
Acts 3:18-21
"But those things, which God before had shewed by the mouth of all his prophets, that Christ should suffer, he hath so fulfilled.
Repent ye therefore, and be converted, that your sins may be blotted out, when the times of refreshing shall come from the presence of the Lord;
And he shall send Jesus Christ, which before was preached unto you:
Whom the heaven must receive until the times of restitution of all things, which God hath spoken by the mouth of all his holy prophets since the world began."
Ephesians 1:10
“That in the dispensation of the fulness of times he might gather together in one all things in Christ, both which are in heaven, and which are on earth; even in him”
Revelations 14:6
“And I saw another angel fly in the midst of heaven, having the everlasting gospel to preach unto them that dwell on the earth, and to every nation, and kindred, and tongue, and people,”
Doctrine and Covenants 1:17-23
Wherefore, I the Lord, knowing the calamity which should come upon the inhabitants of the earth, called upon my servant Joseph Smith, Jun., and spake unto him from heaven, and gave him commandments;
And also gave commandments to others, that they should proclaim these things unto the world; and all this that it might be fulfilled, which was written by the prophets--
The weak things of the world shall come forth and break down the mighty and strong ones, that man should not counsel his fellow man, neither trust in the arm of flesh--
But that every man might speak in the name of God the Lord, even the Savior of the world;
That faith also might increase in the earth;
That mine everlasting covenant might be established;
That the fulness of my gospel might be proclaimed by the weak and the simple unto the ends of the world, and before kings and rulers.”
COMMENT
This was largely received in 2014...and lost. I just discovered it on a jump drive while skimming old files. I do recall, now that I have found it again, that the key was a curiosity as to pastoral compensation for sectarian ministers--something about which Latter-day Saints have no experience.
The Church of Latter-day Saints "all volunteer" organization is, frankly, unique. How strange, then, that we keep expanding all over the globe, while many "mainstream" churches can neither staff their "ministries" (even with rather lucrative compensation packages) nor fill their houses of worship with congregants.
Now, Elders and Sisters, before you engage in "wouldn't it be nice" thinking, two scriptures (out of many on the subject) merit mention: D&C 6:7 "...he who has eternal life is rich" and 2 Nephi 26:31: "But the laborer in Zion shall labor for Zion; for if they labor for money they shall perish." (Let us never forget that Lord Jesus had not "where to lay his head.")
But, more importantly, here and now the faithful striving to love the Lord (and all others) and obey God's commandments, receive tangible, priceless blessings, gifts, experiences, and rewards. While such marvels may not be countable in the "coin of the realm", they are potent, even overwhelming at times, assurances of God's love for us.