Once Upon a Time... part II

So Jared and his brother began to gather all that they had and spread the word, to their family and friends who had not been cursed, to gather all they had and head for the North valley. When all had arrived the Lord came to them in a cloud and helped them begin their journey to the promise land. God wanted this little population to be successful. He traveled with them in a cloud. He taught them and asked that they begin now to keep the promise that Jared had made so that they would be ready when they arrived in the promised land.
Now these were good people but not unusual people. They began to try to keep the promise. Sometimes they succeeded other times they fell short. Many found that, like the brother of Jared, if they prayed and were grateful they could do many great things. They built barges and traveled far following where ever God directed. They began to be capable and knowledgeable. They were good at most everything they did but they forgot how they came to be that way. They forgot to pray and be grateful, even the brother of Jared. So God left them to get what they could on their own and waited for them to remember their promise. After four years God grew tired of waiting. He went to the brother of Jared and reminded him of all that had come before and all that could yet be if they could keep the promise made by Jared. God said that if the brother of Jared could forget then all the people could forget and then he, God, would not be able to give them what they had truly desired because they had forgotten to do their part.
Now The brother of Jared felt his heart break as the Lord reminded him of the many mercies and gifts given to him throughout his life and to his family and friends. In that very moment he began to apologize to God with his broken heart and bind back the pieces by remembering his promise and strengthening it with gratitude.
God could see the change in the brother of Jared and knew that he would not forget again. So he told the brother of Jared to go to work and he did. He started right away on the new barges the Lord said they would need to continue their journey. Seeing the brother of Jared working as God directed reminded Jared and all the people of their promise and they began to work also. They did such good work and followed direction so well that when the barges were finished they kept out water perfectly. When the door was closed not a single drop of water could get inside. They were small and light so they moved easily on the water. They were amazing but the brother of Jared noticed two things as he inspected their new sailing vessels. When the doors were closed no fresh air could get in and it was pitch black inside. He had followed directions exactly so when he found these problems with the barges he started to pray, as was his renewed habit. God answered his prayer by giving him more instruction about how to make holes in the barges that could be opened and shut as fresh air was needed. The brother of Jared and the people went right to work on these new instructions and finished quickly. They were anxious to begin their journey but they still didn't have a solution to the second problem of light inside the barges. Again the brother of Jared asked God for a solution hoping that they would not have to cross the ocean in darkness. This time God's answer was different than all the answers that came before. He asked the brother of Jared how he would like the problem to be solved and the brother of Jared didn't know. The Lord had already explained that windows wouldn't work when he gave instructions about how to get fresh air and fires in the barges would be to dangerous. Jared didn't have a good answer either so he told his brother to take some time and think about it. Jared's brother took his advice and went up into the mountains to think. He went over and over the problem like a riddle looking for the one correct answer. He was afraid to go back to the Lord and ask for help with the wrong one. As he thought about light and how to get it he had an idea. God had always given light to his soul when he asked for it and he was able to keep that light in his soul if he made a place for it. He just needed something to keep the light of God in while they traveled. He was still concerned about finding the right thing though. He didn't think just any old thing would due but he could think of many things that would work. Which one was the right one? He didn't know but he picked the idea he liked best. That was clear stones. He knew how to make them from molten rock. He worked carefully and did his best hoping all the while that he had chosen correctly. He made two small perfectly round stones for each of the barges. Then he took them in his hand to the very top of the mountain to pray again. Looking down at his pile of small clear stones he started to worry. He worried so much that he began his prayer with an apology for not knowing exactly what the Lord wanted already. Then went on to explain what he thought could be done and asked the Lord to help by touching each of the stones and filling them with his perfect light. When the brother of Jared laid down his stones to be touched God reassured him that his best answer was the right answer and if his best answer had been apples he would still have picked the right thing. There was no one right answer. What mattered most was that he believed that the Lord could make his efforts into one of those answers filled with perfect truth, like he had recieved so many times in the past.
The Lord began to touch the stones one by one. The brother of Jared watched as the stones began to be lighted. Then he saw the finger of God as he touched the next one in the pile. He was so afraid he fell down right there and hid his eyes. The Lord saw this and told the Brother of Jared to get up and asked him why he had fallen. The brother of Jared explained that he had seen the finger of God. The Lord said that the brother of Jared's belief had allowed him to see what no one had seen before. The Brother of Jared then saw not just the finger of God but his whole body and learned many great things before he returned to the valley and his brother.
The people rejoiced at seeing the brother of Jared and were even happier when they saw he had with him the solution to their last problem. They could go! They packed the barges immediately. The brother of Jared placed two stones in each vessel. One at each end to light the dark when the doors were closed. As Jared and the rest of the people boarded their vessels and closed the doors they began to understand, maybe for the first time, about God's light. That if they kept their promise to be faithful giving their prayers and gratitude and obedience to God they would never have to travel in darkness of soul and he would light all their faithful solutions as they traveled through the world.
The promised land was everything the Lord had told them it would be. Jared and his brother found peace. They prospered and had many children. They kept their promise to God and taught their children how to keep it and enjoy the light of the Lord, both in their hearts and in the world. Every generation there after enjoyed the same inheritance as long as they kept the promise.

Once Upon a Time...

...there was a young man with an older brother named Jared. Jared was handsome. Jared was tall. He was also honorable, wise, strong, kind and very good at everything he did. In fact, Jared was so amazing in all ways that, people only seemed to recognize the young man as Jared's brother. So that soon became the only way that people spoke of him was to call him the brother of Jared.
The brother of Jared was not jealous he did not mind and usually introduced himself to people as the brother of Jared. He was not without his own merit but he had to work hard to achieve his own wisdom, strength and improvement in his personal endeavors. Often he did not know how to achieve the thing he had set his mind to, the things that came so naturally to his brother. So he got in the habit of praying. Then as he went about his business he would listen with his heart for the guidance he had asked for. Sometimes the advice he received was simple and from a kind neighbor. Other times it was something he would never have thought of. Every now and then it was something that would be difficult and require personal sacrifice but the answers always stood out for their perfect truth. This habit increased until the brother of Jared prayed about most everything. He remembered to thank God for all the assistance and remained humble even as he increased in his endeavors. God remembered his gratitude.
In an uncertain time, surrounding the building of one tower said to be as great as Heaven in it's perfection, there came a great curse upon the land. It began with those boastful builders who claimed their creations were equal to and could reach heaven's perfection. First just their boasts began to be misunderstood then not only their boast could not be interpreted but all of their communications were confounded. Then it spread to there families and soon the curse began to spread like a disease through the whole land.
Jared was worried. So far he had escaped but he was anxious to be able to speak and understand at least one person but did not know how it could be done. Then he remembered his brother. The one who so often seemed to be able to talk to God and understand his replies. Jared went to his brother and asked him if he would ask God to not confound the language spoken between the two of them. So the brother of Jared took this petition to the Lord in prayer. God heard and answered his prayer by not confounding the language of Jared and his brother. Jared was very pleased until he returned home to his house and his beautiful wife greeted him at the door. It struck him that his life would be a misery if he could no longer speak with his wife and what of his children and parents. He went straight back to his brother and told him of his concern. The brother of Jared agreed to speak to the Lord again and the Lord had compassion on him and all his family and friends. They were spared the curse and they were happy, until the curse had spread to every other inhabitant of that land.
The people who were cursed looked at that family and their friends who could speak together and give company to each other by the fireside and they were angry. They did not want tobe reminded of all they had lost they began to say in their hearts that it was Jared and his brother who had stolen their happiness. They started to plan how to drive them out.
Jared began to see that if they were to remain safe and happy that God might allow them to be driven out of their homeland but he did not want to go. So he went to his brother again and asked if they were to be driven from their homes and if they were to be driven out where would they go? The brother of Jared did not know but said he would ask. Then Jared said if he was going to ask God could he also inquire whether there might be a choice land of peace and prosperity that they might still have an inheritance for their children if they could not keep what they had. Then Jared promised if God would provide for him and his family he would be faithful unto God.
So the brother of Jared prayed again and again he received an answer. The Lord said to gather all that they had flocks, fowl, seeds, and all those who had been spared the curse and to go into the valley North of their land. From there he would lead them to that choice land they had asked for and bless them and all their posterity if they kept the promise that Jared made. God said he would do all these things for them because of the brother of Jared's habit of prayer and gratitude. To be continued.

IT'S DONE!!!!! and IT"S COMING TO YOU!!!!

Finished 15 minutes before 9:oo p.m on a Wednesday night I now have a faith stories book! Oh the JOY! the FREEDOM! :-) IT'S FINALLY DONE!! With 13 or 14+ hours of typing, editing, printing, and putting in sheet protectors it's done! (Though it will keep expanding over the years.) Thank You for all your help! Start Checking your e-mail and mail box's your copy IS COMING! :-)
Kieran

Last Call

Hey it's Kieran! I am finishing up on my Faith Stories project. Just in case I didn't call you or you forgot I am putting up this post. I'm nearly finished with my project but this is the last call for stories. I have stories from Grandma and Grandpa Abbott (I found your book grandpa), Elise, Ian, and One of my YW leaders. If you have a story you want to submit please could you send it to me today? Thanks for the stories you have already sent me me they're great!
Kieran

Christmas Memories

Even though the holiday is well over I can still share with you the memories. They were particularly sweet this year. Being jobless during the Christmas Season is not an experience I would ever look for but has brought many tender expressions of love and kindness that we never would have had if this had not been our situation this year. I had some initial trouble getting into the spirit this year. I was struggling to keep my anxiety in check as all the normal things that go by without much notice seemed to each be carrying baseball bats and having a whack at me instead of moving on quietly. I started praying for help to be calm, have peace over the things that were beyond my control and feel like the Lord remembered us. Soon bit by bit I could see and feel the things I had been praying for. Gifts started appearing on the doorstep. Cards came in the mail. Phone calls would come at just the right moments to cheer me up. Family, neighbors and friends nurtured and blessed us at every turn. Soon the scripture came to mind about blessings pouring out and not having room enough to receive them. The fridge was full, the pantry was full, our hearts were full. There would be money for little necessities and gifts. We had a family council about how we could have a good Christmas and use our resources wisely. We decided on a "Family Christmas". We would have gifts not so much for individuals but for the family. There are a lot of things we enjoy together and if the money did not have to be divided so many times over we could spend it on some good gifts and some important things too. The day came and I was a little nervous to see if the kids could really enjoy gifts for everyone. My worry was for naught. The morning was the best Christmas I can recall. Everyone was pleased and happy. The "Family Christmas" really carried a special spirit of unity. No one was worried about how much they got or who was touching their stuff. They had all things common among them and it was a beautiful thing. Here is my group each wearing something new and looking cool, so not quite all things common among them. Then this is them with some of the gifts they received as a family.