Part 1 of a 3 part series -- Does “the one true church” have a membership recruitment/convert baptism problem?

(As you read this post, I'd like you to imagine that you're a manager, and you have a team of people who are assigned to work on a specific project. How is your team doing? If they're struggling, why? For how long? Finally, what can be done to straighten out your team (with at least a modest sense of urgency)? I look forward to reading your observations in the comments).

"Afterward he appeared unto the eleven as they sat at meat, and upbraided them with their unbelief and hardness of heart, because they believed not them which had seen him after he was risen.

And he said unto them, Go ye into all the world, and preach the gospel to every creature.

He that believeth and is baptized shall be saved; but he that believeth not shall be damned." [1] 

"preach my gospel unto every creature who has not received it" [2] 

If ever there was a charge given to the church, it's to go into the world and take the gospel to every creature. Pres. Oaks said, "To proclaim the good news of the gospel of Jesus Christ is a fundamental principle of the Christian faith." [3]  

It's also a responsibility which squarely rests upon the shoulders of the Twelve:

"I give unto you my servant Brigham Young to be a president over the Twelve traveling council; Which Twelve hold the keys to open up the authority of my kingdom upon the four corners of the earth, and after that to send my word to every creature." [4] 

"The responsibility to proclaim the gospel of Jesus Christ to all the world is explicitly given to those who were called and ordained Apostles of the Lord." [5] 

In implementing this directive, the Lord charged His servants to "seek not the things of this world but seek ye first to build up the kingdom of God." [6] That means whatever pertains to this world - no matter what it is - doesn't hold a candle to building God's kingdom. That's why Pres. Benson said, "Preaching the saving principles of the gospel has ever been a great responsibility of first importance." [7] 

So, how is that "Go ye into all the world," "Preach the gospel to every creature" and baptize directive going?

1990: Apostle Russell M. Nelson prophesied the following at a January 7, 1990 BYU devotional:

"Church membership has just passed the seven million mark. Conservative projections indicate that by the year 2000, the Church will have doubled in size. Its membership will then number at least fourteen million. While we now have 1,730 stakes, by the end of the decade there will be more than 3,600 stakes and many more temples. We will be precisely on course in fulfillment of scriptural prophecy that this work will eventually and literally fill the earth (see D&C 65:2)." [8] 

Reality check: By the end of the year 2000 church membership stood at 11,068,861 -- three million short of Nelson's "prophecy". The number of stakes was 2,581, over 1,000 fewer than Nelson's prediction/prophecy. [9]  

1999: Pres. Gordon B Hinckley laid down an audacious goal for the church in the April 1999 General Conference:

"Last year there were approximately 300,000 convert baptisms throughout the Church. This is tremendously significant. But it is not enough. I am not being unrealistic when I say that with concerted effort, with recognition of the duty which falls upon each of us as members of the Church, and with sincere prayer to the Lord for help, we could double that number." [10] 

Reality check: The 600,000 convert baptisms in a year never happened. In fact, 2020 posted a convert baptism rate of less than half that 300k number, which is also less than a quarter of his 600,000 expectation. [11]  

2015: Prophet-seer-revelator Elder Holland said in an interview that:

"But we're greatly blessed, and they [the full-time missionaries] continue to come. They continue to serve. And those numbers will increase. We're projecting out probably within four years, the baseline number for the missionary force will be something around 100,000." [12]  

Reality check: In 2019, there were 67,021 full-time missionaries - a miss by around 1/3.

2015: Elder Quentin L. Cook (Remember: "Prophets of God always speak the truth.") [13] stated in the April 2015 General Conference that:

"The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints has never been stronger. The number of members removing their names from the records of the church has always been very small and is significantly less in recent years than in the past." [14] 

Reality check: In 2015, the 2014 stats were showing a 1.9% membership growth rate. Is that what the Lord expects of his "one true church"? Of those who supposedly hold the priesthood of God? Of the pre-existence's "chosen" and "valiant" ones? Of prophets/seers/revelators?

2015: A 2015 Deseret News article quoted Seventy Joseph W. Sitati as saying, "The rate of growth [in Africa] has been close to exponential." [15]  

Reality check: Matt Martinich (founder of the LDS Church Growth blog Cumorah.com, which tracks Mormon growth and retention internationally) said, "LDS growth in Sub-Saharan Africa continues to be extremely limited. Overall growth trends have appeared much more modest than the 'exponential' growth claims in the recent LDS news release." [16] 

2016: Elder Holland (who also always speaks the truth) told folks at a Young Single Adult Conference in Dallas, TX that:

"We're in the midst of incredible growth, staggering growth in the church. It's the single biggest problem we have. It's the best problem we have, but it's the biggest. We are reeling under the implications of the growth we have in this church. Last Thursday, I've been out here this Thursday, I've been with Elder and Sister Holland and I've been with Elder and Sister Robbins, this week, so I missed the temple meeting this Thursday, but a week ago Thursday we created 15 stakes, and we are doing that más o menos every week, more or less. It might not be 15, but its… the week before it was 12, sometimes it's 8 or whatever and it'll be a little uneven, but the point is, I mean, we are talking double digit stakes every week. Every week of our lives." [17]  

Reality check: That year, the church created 92 new stakes - not even two a week. In 2020, it was exactly one every two weeks. So much for "double digit stakes every week. Every week of our lives." How is the number of missions in 2020 and 2013 being the same considered "staggering growth"? How is a 0.6% growth rate "staggering growth"? How is going from 85,147 to 51,819 (a 39% decrease) in full-time missionaries "staggering growth"?

(By the way, since the apostles are responsible (per scripture) for the church's missionary efforts, I would be interested in reading how many people each of them directly bring into the church each year. You know, some of that "accountability / return and report / lead by example" stuff we're fond of drilling into the heads of the church's local leaders).

Here's what can't be distorted: The church's own reported statistics (the sources are hyperlinked in the year):

	2012	2013	2014	2015	2016	2017	2018	2019	2020
Stakes	3,005	3,050	3,114	3,174	3,266	3,341	3,383	3,437	3,463
Stakes count change		+45	+64	+60	+92	+75	+42	+54	+26
% change		1.4%	2.0%	1.9%	2.8%	2.2%	1.2%	1.5%	0.7%
Missions	347	405	406	418	421	421	413	399	405
Districts	591	571	561	558	556	553	547	542	537
Wards/Branches	29,014	29,253	29,621	30,016	30,304	30,506	30,536	30,940	31,136
Wards count change		+239	+368	+395	+288	+202	+30	+404	+196
Total Mems	14,782,473	15,082,028	15,372,337	15,634,199	15,882,417	16,118,169	16,313,735	16,565,036	16,663,663
Membership change		+299,555	+290,309	+261,862	+248,218	+235,752	+195,566	+251,301	+98,627
% change		2.0%	1.9%	1.7%	1.58%	1.4%	1.21%	1.54%	0.6%
New Children of Record	122,273	115,486	116,409	114,550	109,246	106,771	102,102	94,266	65,440
New CoR change		-6,787	+923	-1,859	-5,304	-2,475	-4,669	7,836	-28,826
Percent growth		-5.5%	0.7%	-1.5%	-4.6%	-2.2%	-4.3%	-7.6%	-30%
Convert baptisms	272,330	282,945	296,803	257,402	240,131	233,729	234,332	248,835	125,930
Convert baptisms change		10,615	13,858	-39,401	-17,271	-6,402	+603	+14,503	-122,905
Percent growth		3.8%	1.92%	1.70%	1.59%	1.47%	0.2%	6.19%	-49.3%
Full-Time Missionaries	58,990	83,035	85,147	74,079	70,946	67,049	65,137	67,021	51,819
Percent growth		40.7%	2.5%	-12.9%	-4.2%	-5.4%	-2.8%	2.8%	-22.6%
Temples in Operation	140	141	144	149	155	159	161	167	168
New temples change		+1	+3	+5	+6	+4	+2	+6	+1

The facts - as published by the church - paint a much different picture than what the Brethren are publicly saying. 

Back in 2018, Martinich called the multiple downward trajectories of church growth "pretty significant." [18]  He also said that U.S. growth has not been this low "in approximately 100 years or longer" (and that was before the even steeper declines within the last four years).

The Big Reality Check

In Russell M. Nelson's aforementioned 1990 BYU devotional, he said that by the year 2000, 

"We will be precisely on course in fulfillment of scriptural prophecy that this work will eventually and literally fill the earth (see D&C 65:2)."

Perhaps we are precisely on course for something all right: a setting in order of the house of God, [19]  because it's so diametrically out of order.

As we read near the top of this post, we are to "seek not the things of this world but seek ye first to build up the kingdom of God."

How is the church doing in seeking not the things of this world? With all its real estate purchases, land and agricultural holdings, stocks/other funds as well as befriending/partnering with organizations which espouse man-made, not god-centered world initiatives, I think it could be said without too much argumentation that the church is awash in the things of this world.

Contrast this with how the church is doing relative to taking the gospel to the world - an almost non-existent membership growth rate, double-digit decreases in new children of record, convert baptisms and full-time missionaries as well as an insignificant amount of humanitarian aid - and it's easy to see that "where your treasure is, there will your heart be also." [20] 

We are told, "Wherefore by their fruits ye shall know them." [21] 

What kinds of fruits do they have to show for their labors? If the fruit - that is, the above statistics - are bad, what does the savior say of the tree? That the apostles have primary responsibility over missionary work is indisputable. 

It's also indisputable that the Lord would never give the church an unrealistic goal (like filling the whole earth with the gospel). 

I say it's high time the apostles do what they expect us to do at the local level: Return and Report. Show some accountability. Show some new results.

That should be pretty easy to do for 15 men who are prophets, seers and revelators.

Then again, maybe not...

The November Surprise

With everything we know at the top of the post about the Lord's passion for taking his gospel to the world and baptizing people, it's shocking that Pres. Nelson said in November 2019,

"I don't think the Lord's interested really in how many members of the church we have. What he's interested in is how many of my children choose to come back and enjoy eternal life in his holy presence." [22] 

If that's the case, then:

• Why was God so hot on people being baptized (and therefore, joining the church), but now he's not?
• If the Lord doesn't care, why keep count?
• How does this quote further motivate the full-time missionary force?
• Why have a missionary program at all? 
• Shouldn't the number of members and the number who choose to come back and enjoy eternal life be the same?
• How can people "come back and enjoy eternal life in his holy presence" without baptism? 
• Or is there a new way to "come back and enjoy eternal life in his holy presence" without joining the church?

The longer we stay in this situation, the crazier it gets.

"by their works ye shall know them,

for if their works be good, then

they are good also." (Moroni 7:5)

(OK, manager: How's your team doing? Are they struggling? For how long? Finally, what can be done to straighten out your team (with at least a modest sense of urgency?) I look forward to reading your observations in the comments).

Covid Updates "Available vaccines have proven to be both safe and effective." "We can win this war if everyone will follow the wise and thoughtful recommendations of medical experts and government leaders" "We know that protection from the diseases they cause can only be achieved by immunizing a very high percentage of the population." (First Presidency message of Thursday, August 12, 2021) "by their works ye shall know them, for if their works be good, then they are good also." (Moroni 7:5) "That which is of God inviteth and enticeth to do good continually." (Moroni 7:13) "Whatsoever thing persuadeth men to do evil, and believe not in Christ, and deny him, and serve not God, then ye may know with a perfect knowledge it is of the devil." (Moroni 7:17)

"Safe": Funeral director/embalmer finds bizarre, rubbery blood clots in bodies of the vaccinated "Safe": Pfizer admits in confidential document that COVID-19 vaccine causes Vaccine-Associated Enhanced Disease (same thing as Antibody Dependent Enhancement) "Effective": Scottish data: Covid case rate is highest among fully vaccinated, lowest among unvaccinated.

Sources

 1.   Mark 16:14-16; Matthew 28:19

 2.   D&C 112:28

 3.   "Sharing the Gospel," October 2001 General Conference.

 4.   D&C 124:127-128

 5.   Pres. David O. McKay, "Present Responsibility of the Church in Missionary Work," April 1954 General Conference.

 6.   JST Matthew 6:38.

 7.   "A World Message," April 1970 General Conference.

 8.   https://speeches.byu.edu/talks/russell-m-nelson/reflection-resolution 

 9.   https://www.churchofjesuschrist.org/study/general-conference/2001/04/statistical-report-2000?lang=eng 

10.   https://www.churchofjesuschrist.org/study/general-conference/1999/04/find-the-lambs-feed-the-sheep 

11.   https://newsroom.churchofjesuschrist.org/article/april-2021-general-conference-statistical-report 

12.   Jeffrey R Holland interview with Hugh Hewitt, February 27, 2015; https://www.hughhewitt.com/a-conversation-with-lds-elder-jeffrey-holland

13.   Wendy Nelson, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DKzTucXZLk8&t=44s 

14.   https://www.lds.org/general-conference/2015/04/the-lord-is-my-light?lang=eng#24-12565_000_29cook 

15.   https://www.deseret.com/2015/10/9/20574033/major-lds-growth-in-africa-unaffected-by-priesthood-restriction-elder-sitati-says#elder-joseph-w-sitati 

16.   https://archive.sltrib.com/article.php?id=3582770&itype=CMSID 

17.   Jeffrey R. Holland, Young Single Adult Conference, Dallas, TX, April 24, 2016; https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vrYpRzi6xtY&feature=youtu.be&t=53m35s 

18.   https://religionnews.com/2018/04/13/mormon-growth-continues-to-slow-especially-in-the-u-s 

19.   D&C 85:7.

20.   Matthew 6:21; Luke 12:34; 3 Nephi 13:21.

21.   Matthew 7:20

22.   https://newsroom.churchofjesuschrist.org/article/president-nelson-indonesia-2019

A BOLD CLAIM: The opening verses of "Upon My House" are now underway

Yesterday, news outlets reported that 91 of the church's 588 missionaries in the Provo MTC have Covid. They're now implementing additional precautions there in Provo. [52]

This raises a few questions for me:

1. Aren't the Brethren supposed to be "prophets, seers and revelators"? If so, and they foresaw this happening to the MTC, then why would they let their own missionaries get so sick? If they didn't foresee this happening to their own missionary workforce, then that raises a ton more questions.
2. Aren't missionaries supposed to have received the jab prior to entering the MTC? How can this be? Isn't the jab supposed to be "safe and effective"? With 1/6 of the already-jabbed missionaries down with Covid, it doesn't sound like the jab is very effective to me.

So, in light of these developments, I thought now might be a good time for a reality check into just how "safe and effective" the jab is which the Brethren recommended we get:

In an announcement sent to the world in August 12, 2021, the First Presidency made the first of two claims:

Claim #1: "Vaccines have proven to be safe and effective"

"To provide personal protection from such severe infections, we urge individuals to be vaccinated. Available vaccines have proven to be both safe and effective." [1]    

Let's examine both the safety and effectiveness of the Covid-19-related vaccines so far. 

"Safe"

• (12/5/21) Pfizer document concedes that there is a large increase in types of adverse events to its vaccine. [2]
• Document released by Pfizer apparently as a result of a Freedom Of Information court order in the USA reveals a vast array of previously unknown vaccine adverse effects compiled from official sources around the world.
• Pfizer concedes this is 'a large increase' in adverse event reports and that even this huge volume is under reported.
• Over 100+ diseases are listed, many very serious.
• This document was compiled by Pfizer in the very early days of the vaccine rollout in NZ but was possibly not supplied to our government.
• (11/8/21) CDC director admits to "people dying from vaccine" during an interview [3]
• (10/10/21) An excellent compilation of events surrounding Covid-related deaths [4]
• (9/28/21) Whistleblower: Nearly 50k Medicare patients died soon after getting COVID shot [5]
• United Kingdom
• (12/6/21) A still-staggering 81% of hospital deaths in the UK are of the vaccinated. [6]  [7]
• (9/24/21) UK hospital data shocks the world: 80% of COVID deaths are among the vaccinated… COVID deaths up 3,000% after vaccine wave [8]
• (11/11/21) U.K.: 4x more vaxxed people are dying than unvaxxed [9]

"Effective"

Studies

• (11/23/21) Swedish study of 4 million people found that the vaccine (1) doesn't offer protection at all, (2) its so-called protection plunged significantly after six months, and (3) those who are vaccinated are more likely to be infected and suffer severe disease than people who aren't vaccinated. [10]
• (9/30/21) Comprehensive study: Higher vaccination rates DO NOT result in lower COVID-19 infection rates [11]
• Published in Sept. 2021 in the European Journal of Epidemiology, a monthly peer-reviewed medical journal
• Examined 168 countries and 2,947 counties in the United States

US

• (10/8/21) Most vaccinated state in America now seeing massive surge in Covid hospitalizations [12]
• Biden's own administration advises against traveling to high vaccination countries because of surging Covid outbreaks there. [13]

Israel

• "Most of the population [in Israel] is vaccinated, and 90%...85-90% of the hospitalizations here are "fully vaccinated" people. Yes, unfortunately, the vaccine…as they say, the effectiveness is waning. Outbreaks in hospitals, one patient infects a large number of people. It is not just here and there." [14]
• (8/16/21) "Israel has among the world's highest levels of vaccination for COVID-19, with 78% of those 12 and older fully vaccinated, the vast majority with the Pfizer vaccine. Yet the country is now logging one of the world's highest infection rates, with nearly 650 new cases daily per million people. More than half are in fully vaccinated people." [15]

Singapore

• (9/13/21) It has already reached 81% vaccination rate (ages 12+; one of the fastest in the world to reach that level of compliance). [16]
• Still seeing chronic illness explosion [16]
• The number of patients requiring oxygen doubled [16]

Scotland

• (12/3/21) Fully vaccinated account for 9 in every 10 Covid-19 deaths since August in Scotland. [17]
• (9/14/21) 80% of Covid deaths in Scotland are occurring among VACCINATED residents. [18]

Ireland

• (11/5/21) Ireland experiencing highest number of new Covid infections in Europe despite also having highest percentage of adults "fully vaccinated" [19]

Australia

• (9/30/21) 6 out of 7 new COVID-19 deaths in New South Wales were vaccinated [20]

Africa

• (11/22/21) Africa is only 6% vaccinated, and Covid has practically disappeared. Scientists are "baffled" [21]

Schools

• (9/27/21) Almost fully vaccinated Harvard Business School shuts down after massive COVID-19 outbreak [22]
• (9/16/21) Cornell University [23]
• It has a strict vaccine mandate
• Has a 95% FULL vaccination rate
• The mandate has done little to control infections at the school
• COVID-19 cases are spiking
• The shots are not stopping the virus from spreading

"Ye shall know them by their fruits." [24]

"Wherefore by their fruits ye shall know them." [25]

"You assist an evil system most effectively by obeying its orders and decrees. An evil system never deserves such allegiance. Allegiance to it means partaking of the evil. A good person will resist an evil system with his or her whole soul." [26]

Claim #2: "Follow the wise and thoughtful recommendations of medical experts and government leaders."

"We can win this war if everyone will follow the wise and thoughtful recommendations of medical experts and government leaders." [1]

What is the most underreported story of 2021? The horrific COVID policies (developed and promoted by said medical experts and government officials) that are hurting young people.

“They will be paying for our generation’s decisions the rest of their lives”: @JanCBS explains why she thinks 2021's biggest underreported story was the devastating impact of COVID policies on children pic.twitter.com/AUU1f6AFNi

— Face The Nation (@FaceTheNation) December 26, 2021

What do the "medical experts and government leaders" actually do (or not do)?

Here's Rep. Jim Jordan interviewing Dr. Marty Makary (Professor of Surgery, John Hopkins School of Medicine) on Dec. 21, 2021 during a meeting of the Select Subcommittee on the Coronavirus Crisis:

"We have we have the head guy, Mr. Fauci,  Dr. Fauci, saying "I represent science," but he's afraid to actually do the science and do the studies that need to be done to answer this question [about natural immunity] and we have to rely on international studies and your private study to get the truth to the American people."

"They [the U.S. federal government] knows the answer and don't want the American people, uh, they they know the answer and don't want the American people to know or they do know the answer and are trying to hide it." [27]

What do the scriptures and church leaders say about trusting in the arm of flesh?

(Unless the First Presidency, medical experts and governments are not mortal, the following applies to them):

"For I will not trust in my bow, neither shall my sword save me. But thou hast saved us from our enemies, and hast put them to shame that hated us. In God we boast all the day long, and praise thy name for ever. Selah." [28]

"Cease ye from man, whose breath is in his nostrils" [29]

"Take ye heed every one of his neighbour, and trust ye not in any brother: for every brother will utterly supplant, and every neighbour will walk with slanders." [30]

"Thus saith the Lord; Cursed be the man that trusteth in man, and maketh flesh his arm, and whose heart departeth from the Lord." [31]

"O Lord, I have trusted in thee, and I will trust in thee forever. I will not put my trust in the arm of flesh; for I know that cursed is he that putteth his trust in the arm of flesh. Yea, cursed is he that putteth his trust in man or maketh flesh his arm." [32]

"Cursed is he that putteth his trust in man, or maketh flesh his arm, or shall hearken unto the precepts of men, save their precepts shall be given by the power of the Holy Ghost." [33]

“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” [34]

"For, behold, you should not have feared man more than God." [35]

"And now I command you, my servant Joseph, to repent and walk more uprightly before me, and to yield to the persuasions of men no more;" [36]

Click here for General Authority statements which condemn trusting in the arm of flesh. 

My Opinion: We are now witnessing the opening verses of "Upon My House"

Are church leaders telling us to follow the wise and thoughtful recommendations of medical experts and government leaders? Yes.

Are these same medical experts and government leaders ignoring a course which prioritizes natural health (and enhancing the body's innate, God-given immunity capabilities) and instead promoting a man-made remedy (that's neither safe nor effective)? Yes.

Are we in the last days? Yes. 

Did the Lord say there would be evil, designing, conspiring men in the last days? Yes. 

Are these men linked to our health? Yes, via D&C 89 (aka the word of wisdom):

"Given for a principle with promise, adapted to the capacity of the weak and the weakest of all saints, who are or can be called saints.

Behold, verily, thus saith the Lord unto you: In consequence of evils and designs which do and will exist in the hearts of conspiring men in the last days, I have warned you, and forewarn you, by giving unto you this word of wisdom by revelation" [37]

What did the Lord promise those who took his word of wisdom seriously?

"And all saints who remember to keep and do these sayings, walking in obedience to the commandments, shall receive health in their navel and marrow to their bones;

And shall find wisdom and great treasures of knowledge, even hidden treasures;

And shall run and not be weary, and shall walk and not faint.

And I, the Lord, give unto them a promise, that the destroying angel shall pass by them, as the children of Israel, and not slay them. Amen." [38]

Wow! What promises! I believe them with all my heart and soul. I rejoice, and am thrilled, that they totally supersede and are superior to anything man can develop! I cannot praise his name loud enough, nor long enough, for these awesome promises the Lord made to you and me.

Now let's see what General Authorities have said about the word of wisdom, its awesome promises of health (and more!) and Covid:

The answer is: Nothing.

That's right: Not once has the First Presidency, Quorum of the Twelve nor any general authority mentioned D&C 89 in any General Conference talk nor official public pronouncement regarding Covid. They have ignored it. [39]

This is baffling because there has been a genuine, bona fide, worldwide health crisis for the last couple of years, and yet the church treats God's word regarding health with utter silence? What's the deal? 

Isn't this a prime opportunity to invite the world to put the Lord's words regarding health to the test? An opportunity to testify of the mercy and the truthfulness of his words? Isn't this an opportunity to show the world what the power of faith, and the power of true priesthood, can do to those stricken with Covid?

What an utterly blown missionary opportunity.

The words of the "wise and thoughtful recommendations of medical experts and government leaders" are always changing. How can you possibly trust "wise and thoughtful recommendations" which are inconsistent?

Yet God's words never change. They are always consistent. You can always count on them.

"Verily I say unto you, he that is ordained of me and sent forth to preach the word of truth by the Comforter, in the Spirit of truth, doth he preach it by the Spirit of truth or some other way? 

And if it be by some other way it is not of God.

And again, he that receiveth the word of truth, doth he receive it by the Spirit of truth or some other way?

If it be some other way it is not of God." [40]

Now let's look at the implications of the LDS church members' desire to "follow the prophet" and trust the medical experts and government leaders (instead of the neglected/ignored words of the Lord). 

In this quote, Joseph Smith directly links "depending on the prophet" with having a darkened mind:

"Prest. J. Smith rose, read the 14th Chap. of Ezekiel— said the Lord had declar’d by the prophet that the people should each one stand for himself and depend on no man or men in that state of corruption of the Jewish church— that righteous persons could only deliver their own souls— app[l]ied it to the present state of the church of Latter-Day Saints— said if the people departed from the Lord, they must fall— that they were depending on the prophet hence were darkened in their minds from neglect of themselves— envious toward the innocent, while they afflict the virtuous with their shafts of envy." [41]

Interestingly, there's another scripture that mentions the loss of one's spiritual light (and quite likely ties in with Covid):

"And the light of a candle shall shine no more at all in thee; and the voice of the bridegroom and of the bride shall be heard no more at all in thee: for thy merchants were the great men of the earth; for by thy sorceries were all nations deceived." [42]

• "And the light of a candle shall shine no more at all in thee"
  • Is literally kai phOs luchnou ou mE phanE en soi eti, or "And light of lamp not no may be appearing in you." [43]
  • This cross-references with Jeremiah 25:10: "I will take from them the voice of mirth, and the voice of gladness, the voice of the bridegroom, and the voice of the bride, the sound of the millstones, and the light of the candle"
• "the voice of the bridegroom and of the bride shall be heard no more at all in thee"
  • The spirit of the bride (righteous, faithful mortals) and the spirit of the bridegroom (the Lord) no longer resonate within them. [44]
• "for thy merchants were the great men of the earth"
  • The Greek word for merchants is emporoi (plural of emporos) [43] [45]
  • They -- the great and important of the earth -- are selling something. What are they selling? Keep reading...
• "sorceries"
  • Is pharmakeia (far-mak-i'-ah) - the root word for words we commonly use today, like pharmacist and pharmaceutical.
  • It not only means "drugs," but also "poisoning" and/or “the use or administering of drugs” and/or an "enchantment" [46]
• "were all nations deceived"
  • Is eplanEthEsan panta ta ethnE, or "all the nations were strayed/deceived" [43]

Next, let's move things forward a bit into D&C 112:

"Verily, verily, I say unto you, darkness covereth the earth, and gross darkness the minds of the people, and all flesh has become corrupt before my face." [47]

Here, we see many associations between Revelation 18:23 and D&C 112:23 AND the Joseph Smith quote from above:

And the ultimate result of all this darkness?

"Behold, vengeance cometh speedily upon the inhabitants of the earth, a day of wrath, a day of burning, a day of desolation, of weeping, of mourning, and of lamentation; and as a whirlwind it shall come upon all the face of the earth, saith the Lord." [48]

(Interestingly, according to the National Institute of Health, "COVID-19 infection is accompanied by an aggressive inflammatory response with the release of a large amount of pro-inflammatory cytokines in an event known as a “cytokine storm.” The host immune response to the SARS-CoV-2 virus is hyperactive resulting in an excessive inflammatory reaction.") [49] A "whirlwind" is a type of "storm."

Where will these punishments emerge?

"And upon my house shall it begin, and from my house shall it go forth, saith the Lord;" [50]

Where will it start?

"First among those among you, saith the Lord, who have professed to know my name and have not known me, and have blasphemed against me in the midst of my house, saith the Lord." [51]

Or, in other words,

"depending on the prophet" --> 

means you are following the ever-changing "wise and thoughtful recommendations of medical experts and government leaders" -- "conspiring men" -- instead of the never-changing words of the Lord -->

means that "the people" are "darkened in their minds" --> 

because of that, "vengeance cometh speedily"

which begins "upon my house"

"First among those among you, saith the Lord, who have professed to know my name and have not known me"

I wonder who these people are "who have professed to know my name and have not known me"…

Sources

1. First Presidency, August 12, 2021; https://newsroom.churchofjesuschrist.org/article/first-presidency-message-covid-19-august-2021
2. https://dailytelegraph.co.nz/news/pfizer-document-concedes-that-there-is-a-large-increase-in-types-of-adverse-event-reaction-to-its-vaccine
3. https://www.infowars.com/posts/slip-of-the-tongue-cdc-director-says-people-dying-from-vaccine-before-quickly-correcting-herself
4. https://www.stopworldcontrol.com/downloads/en/vaccines/vaccine-death-report.pdf
5. https://www.lifesitenews.com/news/nearly-50k-medicare-patients-died-soon-after-getting-covid-shot-whistleblower
6. https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/1036047/Vaccine_surveillance_report_-_week_47.pdf
7. https://www.thegatewaypundit.com/2021/11/report-fully-vaccinated-account-81-covid-deaths-uk
8. https://humansarefree.com/2021/09/covid-19-deaths-higher-than-this-time-last-year.html
9. https://dailyexpose.uk/2021/11/17/covid-deaths-ratio-vaxxed-to-unvaxxed-41-corporate-media-should-be-censored-for-spreading-disinformation
10. https://alexberenson.substack.com/p/another-major-red-flag-about-covid
11. https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s10654-021-00808-7
12. https://www.theepochtimes.com/us-state-with-highest-vaccination-rate-hit-by-virus-surge_4032144.html
13. https://www.naturalnews.com/2021-07-28-government-advises-against-traveling-high-vaccination-countries.html
14. https://grandmageri422.me/2021/09/15/israeli-doctor-kobi-haviv-fully-vaccinated-account-for-85-90-of-hospitalizations-and-former-vice-president-of-committee-from-who-professor-christian-perronne-yesterday-said-that-all-v/comment-page-1
15. Dr. Kobi Haviv, https://www.science.org/news/2021/08/grim-warning-israel-vaccination-blunts-does-not-defeat-delta
16. https://news.trust.org/item/20210913112754-w5k94
17. https://www.theepochtimes.com/mkt_morningbrief/who-no-evidence-booster-vaccines-offer-greater-protection-to-healthy-populations_4137217.html
18. https://citizenfreepress.com/breaking/check-the-covid-death-chart-in-karl-denningers-new-piece
19. https://www.naturalnews.com/2021-11-05-ireland-highest-covid-infections-adults-fully-vaccinated.html
20. https://bigleaguepolitics.com/australian-public-health-official-admits-that-6-of-7-recent-covid-19-deaths-had-been-vaccinated
21. https://news.yahoo.com/scientists-mystified-wary-africa-avoids-074905034.html
22. https://www.cnbc.com/2021/09/27/harvard-business-school-temporarily-moves-some-mba-classes-online-to-curb-covid-outbreak.html
23. https://www.ithaca.com/news/coronavirus/cornell-sees-spike-in-cases-no-severe-disease-sticks-to-status-quo/article_95b11d7e-0ce1-11ec-bb9d-a728f02c2e99.html
24. Matthew 7:16; 3 Nephi 14:16
25. Matthew 7:20; 3 Nephi 14:20
26. Mahatma Gandhi
27. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lJE7Tc8YGsc
28. Psalm 44:6–8
29. Isaiah 2:22; 2 Nephi 12:22
30. Jeremiah 9:4
31. Jeremiah 17:5
32. 2 Nephi 4:34
33. 2 Nephi 28:31
34. D&C 1:19
35. D&C 3:7
36. D&C 5:21
37. D&C 89:3-4
38. D&C 89:18-21
39.   https://www.google.com/search?q=%22word+of+wisdom%22+%22covid%22&newwindow=1&rlz=1C1FHFK_enUS980US981&tbs=cdr:1,cd_min:1/1/2020,cd_max:12/31/2021&sxsrf=AOaemvLx9-39kElN2zm4_8v82P8Xh6zcIg:1640158647743&source=lnms&tbm=nws&sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwiD7MqM8_b0AhVMmWoFHVBVBU0Q_AUoBHoECAEQBg&cshid=1640158672297106&biw=1920&bih=937&dpr=1
40. D&C 50:17-20
41. https://www.josephsmithpapers.org/paper-summary/nauvoo-relief-society-minute-book/48#full-transcript
42. Revelation 18:23
43. https://www.scripture4all.org/OnlineInterlinear/NTpdf/rev18.pdf
44. See Jeremiah 7:34; Jeremiah 16:9
45. https://biblehub.com/greek/1713.htm
46. https://biblehub.com/greek/5331.htm
47. D&C 112:23
48. D&C 112:24
49.   https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7308649
50. D&C 112:25
51. D&C 112:26
52.   https://www.thechurchnews.com/members/2021-12-30/provo-mtc-implements-additional-covid-19-protocols-after-91-of-588-missionaries-test-positive-238390

The Coming Testimony of Earthquakes

Let's examine Matthew 24:7 for a minute:

"For nation shall rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom: and there shall be famines, and pestilences, and earthquakes, in divers places."

See famines, pestilences and earthquakes?

First, in the original Greek, the main words are in that same sequence: limoi (famines), loimoi (pestilences) and seismoi (earthquakes). Second, divers doesn't refer to a place where you can go scuba diving. It's actually related to the adjective diverse, meaning "various or assorted" Sure enough, the original Greek uses the term topous panta, meaning "all places." [1] [2]

(The Lord uses this same sequence -- famine, plague and earthquake -- in Mark 13:34 (JST) and D&C 87:6. Coincidence? I don't think so).

Let's add this up:

Have we seen famines over the last few years in various, assorted places? Yes.

Have we seen Covid-19 -- a pestilence -- in various, assorted places? Yes.

Have the famines remained during the Covid-19 era? Yes.

The scriptures are clear: Earthquakes are next on the list of judgments for mankind. And they could very easily run simultaneous to famines and current/future pandemics.

They will occur not just in one or two places, but topous panta -- ALL places -- just like Covid-19. Does that mean places which aren't typically home to earthquakes? Perhaps. 

Does that mean we'll see earthquakes more severe than we've seen in the past? Well, if the progression of events (from famines to pestilences) is any indication, then it would be a safe assumption that yes, these earthquakes will be more lethal than the ones we've seen in the past, killing hundreds or even thousands at a time. After all, your usual, run-of-the-mill, 4-5 pointers aren't that rare anymore. But 8s? 9s? 10s? I'd say those ought to catch people's attention, which (in my estimation) God has been attempting to do…without much success.

Despite what the mass media-government-pharma triumvirate would have you believe, there are medicines which cure Covid-19. In days.[3]

But tell me this: What medicines are there for earthquakes? How can we prevent them? How can we escape them? If our homes or buildings collapse, what do we do? Put on a mask? Get an injection? Talk about how grateful we are? YES! Have a churchwide fast for geologists and seismologists!

Let's get real: All these measures (via trusting in the wisdom of medical experts and government leaders, per the First Presidency's prophetic insight) aren't going to make a difference at all. 

When those tectonic plates start moving and bringing about disastrous consequences, it will be because of God's anger. 

Any why is his anger revealed? Because of the sins and iniquities of people. And also because the blood of the martyrs and innocents cry for vengeance (see Revelation 6:9-11). I would imagine that included in the list of innocents would be those who were aborted as fetuses. And how about all those who have been murdered, raped, tortured and terrorized? Them too.

Take a look around you. Have you seen society moving closer to, or further away from, God? 

Blessed is the one who abides under the shadow of the Lord, for he will have shelter and refuge. [4] [5]   

There is only one way out of what's happening (and about to get worse). And it doesn't involve masks, because masks aren't going to do you much good in a severe earthquake. Neither will swabs up your nose, injections or booster shots. And gratitude? That's great, but it's not the bullseye.

God has said again and again, through true prophets, that repentance is the key to circumventing these judgments. Those who do so will be protected under his loving, metaphorical wings. 

Here's what I said in a previous post:

"There are over four dozen references to "pestilence" in the scriptures. In the days of Moses, God sent pestilences to persuade Pharaoh to let Israel go [6], and then to an unrepentant Israel [7].  In Psalms 78; we are reminded that pestilences were sent to Israel because it "remembered not his hand."

Pestilence is almost always tied to sin  [8]. In 2 Chronicles 6:28, Solomon prayed that God would "forgive the sin of thy servants, and of thy people Israel" in order to stave off pestilence. In response, the Lord said, "If I shut up heaven that there be no rain, or if I command the locusts to devour the land, or if I send pestilence among my people; If my people, which are called by my name, shall humble themselves, and pray, and seek my face, and turn from their wicked ways; then will I hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin, and will heal their land." [9]. Pestilences are also linked to unbelief in God  [10] and for not remembering him [11]."

In fact, check this out:

"Thus saith the LORD unto this people, Thus have they loved to wander, they have not refrained their feet, therefore the LORD doth not accept them; he will now remember their iniquity, and visit their sins.

Then said the LORD unto me, Pray not for this people for their good.

When they fast, I will not hear their cry; and when they offer burnt offering and an oblation, I will not accept them: but I will consume them by the sword, and by the famine, and by the pestilence." [12]

(Hmmmm, have you heard of any fasts within the last year or two where it seems like the Lord didn't respond to their pleas?)

When you repent, God is moved to compassion, which in turn makes way for God's mercies to take over in your life. Just the mere fact that he hasn't exacted more severe judgments yet upon the world is a testament to the infinite mercies he has for us.

But repentance is not the only thing you need to do. You also need to be able to hear God's voice…

"And even so will I gather mine elect from the four quarters of the earth, even as many as will believe in me, and hearken unto my voice." [13]

"And whoso receiveth not my voice is not acquainted with my voice, and is not of me." [14]

"And upon them that hearken not to the voice of the Lord shall be fulfilled that which was written by the prophet Moses, that they should be cut off from among the people." [15]

"And again I say, hearken unto my voice, lest death shall overtake you; in an hour when ye think not the summer shall be past, and the harvest ended, and your souls not saved." [16]

…and hear it well enough so that you KNOW God:

"Verily, I say unto you, It is not everyone that saith unto me, Lord, Lord, that shall enter into the kingdom of heaven, but he that doeth the will of my Father who is in heaven.

For the day soon cometh that men shall come before me to judgment, to be judged according to their works.

And many will say unto me in that day, Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in thy name; and in thy name cast out devils; and in thy name done many wonderful works?

And then will I say, Ye never knew me; depart from me, ye that work iniquity." [17]

Whom seek ye?

Anybody standing in between you and Jesus today?

These days, hearing God's voice well enough that you know God might be a bit of a challenge. There are lots of competing voices out there.

This year, many sought God's counsel as to whether they should take the Covid shot or not. Of those who sought God's advice, many received crystal clear, definitive answers not to go through with it. Many held to that counsel until the First Presidency urged members to take the jab. They disregarded the personal revelation they received and instead followed a man, not their God-given inspiration.

What do you call it when someone or some thing stands in between a person and God? Oh yeah! "Idolatry."

Speaking of which, General Conference will be held this weekend. I'll be interested to hear the Brethren's counsel on how to overcome the challenges mankind faces with Covid-19. If the past is any indication, the results will be dismal. In the April 2021 General Conference, the word "Nelson" was used 58 times. "Oaks" 18 times. "Repent" (and any variations of that word) 31 times. And pestilence was mentioned zero times.  [18] [19]

It's fascinating that the church's top leaders refer to themselves

more than they acknowledge the true cure for what ails mankind.

In times of uncertainty, people yearn for certainty. Vaccines have given back that sense of control to many people.

But what will you do when these attention-grabbing earthquakes (which, again, are next up on God's to-do list) start to "diversify" themselves in your area? Will you be consulting medical experts? "Trusted" government leaders? Looking for that Covid mask?

When power, internet and cell phone service is indefinitely knocked out in your area, who will you seek then?

How about the leaders who could have preached the preventative gospel of repentance but didn't…or leaders who continually refuse to mention the R word in the first place?

Better start contemplating your answer soon. You'll need it.

Sources

 1.   https://www.scripture4all.org/OnlineInterlinear/NTpdf/mat24.pdf

 2.   https://wikidiff.com/divers/diverse

 3.   https://jabupdate.com/#aftercovid

 4.   Psalm 91:1

 5.   Psalm 18:2

 6.   Exodus 9:15

 7.   Leviticus 26:25; Numbers 14:12; Deuteronomy 28:21; 2 Samuel 24:13-15; 1 Chronicles 21:12-14

 8.   Mosiah 12:2-7; Helaman 11:15; D&C 97:26

 9.   2 Chronicles 7:13

10.   2 Nephi 6:15

11.   Helaman 12:3

12.   Jeremiah 14:10-12

13.   D&C 33:6

14.   D&C 84:52

15.   D&C 133:63

16.   D&C 45:2

17.   Matthew 7:30-33 JST

18.   https://lds365.com/2021/04/08/analysis-of-text-of-april-2021-general-conference-talks

19.   https://lds365.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/04/gc-april-2021-word-frequency.txt

President Nelson's Prayer

"And no one dared disturb...the sound of silence."

If you saw a person dying, and you could heal them (and history and even God himself has shown that you could heal them), would you do it? 

Or would you simply sit back, pat their hand, and sooth them on their way out of mortality with gentle words and tearful stories about your loved ones who've passed on?

Which option has the greater message of healing and hope?

In my last post, I discussed how prophets have always delivered a very specific message to alleviate pestilences and prevent greater destructions: Repentance. Yet in his 11/20/20 message to the world, Pres. Nelson chose a message which deviated from the proven prescription God has always given mankind, and focused not on repentance, but gratitude. 

"Therefore also now, saith the Lord, turn ye even to me with all your heart, and with fasting, and with weeping, and with mourning:
And rend your heart, and not your garments, and turn unto the Lord your God: for he is gracious and merciful, slow to anger, and of great kindness, and repenteth him of the evil." [1]

Pres. Nelson also encouraged members not to turn to God with all their rended hearts, not to fast with weeping and morning, but to instead implement a week-long social media blitz promoting #GiveThanks. How can we even expect to please God without a broken heart, contrite spirit and taking advantage of the Savior's atonement?

With a full-blown plague in control of the world, and abortions, murders, thefts, lyings and unbelief in God at all time highs, perhaps today isn't a day of warning and repentance, but happiness and hope! Maybe everything's hunky dorey with God and repentance for all these sins isn't a top priority with him anymore.  

Either God is now overlooking mankind's true (wicked) spiritual state, or God's true message got lost in translation. 

Messages of Power

When the prophets of old delivered their messages of divinely-decreed doom and certain solutions, they did so boldly, directly and unambiguously from God. The only time they referred to themselves was in mentioning that they were sent to deliver their message by God himself.

In some cases, their messages stuck. In Helaman 11, we read how in the 72nd year of the reign of the judges, Nephi saw a "secret band of robbers who did carry on this work of destruction and wickedness" among the people of Nephi. A year later, he prayed that God would not "suffer that this people shall be destroyed by the sword," so instead, he called down "a famine in the land, to stir them up in remembrance of the Lord their God, and perhaps they will repent and turn unto thee." 

And boom, it happened. The famine was tremendously destructive enough that, by the 76th year, the people were sufficiently humbled and repentant. Due to a subsequent prayer by Nephi, God "turned away his anger from the people" and ended the famine. [2]

Today, we live in similar (and I suspect dramatically worse) times. The graphs detailing the spread of COVID-19 show that mankind is unwilling to humble itself nor be repentant.[3]  If this story of the people of Nephi is any indication, all it takes is for one person to pray to God (to help people remember him, be humble and repent), and God enthusiastically agrees. Last week, Pres. Nelson openly called on God to help us repent.[4] What do YOU think God will do?

One person recently surmised, "If a prophet of god really was a prophet and cared about people, wouldn't he be able to convert basically the entire world if he just said "yo covid, **** off," proving he really is a prophet?" Helaman 11:1-17 shows that's not how God operates. God will send forth his prophets to warn, and if the warnings aren't heeded, he unleashes the consequences, letting them continue until the people repent (like the people of Nephi in Helaman 11) or are all dead (like the Nephite civilization). [5]

Circumventing the Sound of Silence

Regardless of whether you think the United States presidential election is legitimate or not, the voice of the people (as expressed by its leaders) -- in the U.S. and many other countries -- has chosen to have its government run by those who proudly encourage (or are silent regarding): 

1. Murdering unborn children.
2. Admitting people into our country in direct contravention to our laws.
3. Accommodating and funding countries, and electing federal representatives and judges, who are violently opposed to God, Christians and freedom.
4. Anarchist groups fomenting riots and violence in our neighborhoods.
5. Sexual education of young children and encouraging them to reconsider their God-given genders.
6. Corrupting electoral laws, processes and procedures.
7. Eliminating divinely-inspired constitutional rights, provisions and principles.
8. Preferential treatment for individuals based on the color of their skin, not the content of their character.
9. Taking away income rightfully earned by an individual and giving it to another who has not earned it.
10. Embracing socialist and even communist ideologies.

Because of this, God has promised:

"And if the time comes that the voice of the people doth choose iniquity, then is the time that the judgments of God will come upon you; yea, then is the time he will visit you with great destruction even as he has hitherto visited this land." [6]

"For as their laws and their governments were established by the voice of the people, and they who chose evil were more numerous than they who chose good, therefore they were ripening for destruction, for the laws had become corrupted." [7]

As these circumstances have proliferated throughout the world and intensified in their evilness, a true prophet would have been sounding the warning cries years ago. Yet nothing was said. I'm confident this would have been considered God's "Plan A."

After COVID-19 started affecting our way of life last spring, not one, but two fasts were undertaken by our church. Yet these fasts did not have their ultimate origins from within people's hearts, but the LDS Church's newsroom. Naturally, COVID-19 just smiled and kept racking up numbers of unemployed, hopeless, helpless, sick and dying. There went "Plan B."

Then on November 13, 2020, we were told that a revelation was coming from the church's prophet that was so important, that we had to wait a week to hear it. There was no explanation given as to why we needed to wait a week. If it was so important and uplifting, why couldn't it have been released on the 13th? This is tantamount to saying "I have a cure for cancer, but I am not going to tell anyone right now. Let's wait a little while." It was an unnecessarily-delayed message with no prophetic warning. Because one's expression of gratitude to the masses (in this case, social media) is being used as a replacement for repentance, and has never been a prescribed remedy for pestilences, its success -- as God's possible "Plan C" -- is dubious at best.

At a time when people are desperate for real answers, real solutions and real leadership, the world has yet to be officially called to repentance. I am bewildered why it is so difficult for a supposed prophet of God, a global faith "leader", to do so. Why do the 15 men who literally stand in between you and Jesus walk on eggshells while in the proximity of the R word?

Luckily, God is implementing a Plan D: In lieu of prophets not prophesying, he's been taking his message straight to the people. 

We have been told that the prophecy of Joel (Joel 2:28-29) is fulfilled, wherein the Lord "will pour out my spirit upon all flesh; and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, your old men shall dream dreams, your young men shall see visions: And also upon the servants and upon the handmaids in those days will I pour out my spirit." 

Adults and children, men and women, ARE having dreams of the world's near-future. Just click here and do what one of my relatives did, and join the "Latter Day Saints Dream Dreams" Facebook group.[8] You'll see there are many people having dreams of the future, and their frequency seems to be increasing. Yes, these dreams are for individuals. But when you read variations of the same dream repeated throughout this group, you kinda start to sit up and take notice. With respect to America, these dreams often describe a lockdown due to a virus, forced vaccine tests and vaccinations, mobs, gangs, economic collapse, military-enforced lockdowns, relocation of people to concentration camps, no power grid and more. They also describe simultaneous earthquakes, tsunamis, volcanic eruptions and military invasions.

What Would (Helaman) Nephi Say Today?

History proves that one way or another, God's going to warn those he wants to warn. It may happen individually (through dreams or visions) or collectively (through a prophet or calamities). We know he's doing so now on an individual basis, and I have more than enough evidence to show that he's doing so collectively via COVID-19. 

But what would happen if a modern-day Nephi said roughly the same prayer as is found in Helaman 11:4 (when Nephi called down the famine)? What if he were prompted a bit differently, customized to today's circumstances?

Here is my guess:

Oh God, the Eternal Father, hallowed be your name. 

Please look upon my heart and mind. I approach you in meekness and humility, knowing I am no better than the dust of the earth. Yet I, as your son, raise my hands to the heavens, knowing that you are no respecter of persons, and give abundantly to those who knock on the doors to your Throne Room three times. So I come before your throne of grace with boldness as well, for I believe in you. I believe you. I trust you.

You have seen the sorrowful, sinful state of my people. They continue enthusiastically murdering unborn children and the elderly. They support those who are violently opposed to you, Christians and freedom. They foment riots and violence in our neighborhoods. They teach our young to reconsider their God-given genders. Corrupt representatives, judges and leaders have defiled our laws, processes and procedures. They are eliminating divinely-inspired constitutional rights, provisions and principles. At all turns, we are besieged by immorality and amorality. And all of these circumstances are increasing.

You have allowed the release of a plague and pestilence designed to stimulate a change of heart and repentance among your people. Yet mankind has lifted up it's fist in protest and seeks to rely upon its own supposed wisdom, while further entrenching itself in sin. Our leaders dare not call the people to repentance, which you have looked in times past with gladness, mercy, forgiveness, healing and abundance. Their fasts have been disregarded, as you have allowed this virus to continue infecting the world unabated.

Therefore, please hear my voice as I cry to you in the night, under these stars which gently proclaim the majesty of your light and love. I know that this people is beyond ripe for destruction. Please do not suffer that we shall be destroyed by the sword as yet. 

But O Holy Father, rather, let there be a greater, more powerful pestilence which shall instill not only fear, not only quicker death, but also a greater remembrance of the Lord their God, that perhaps they will repent and turn unto you before they, too, are consumed by this pestilence.

Please also simultaneously release your power -- the power of your Holy Spirit -- to go into the world. Enlighten and empower those who fear you, that they may preach the gospel to all creation: the gospel of peace, of miracles, of healing, of life and love, which all come in and through your Holy Son, Jesus Christ, in whose name I pray. Amen.

QUESTIONS

Based on the aforementioned facts, I have the following questions:

• If you had the ability to heal someone from a death sentence, would you do it, or just speak soothing words to them?
• Is hopping on social media the best way to get people to repent?
• What did God do in Helaman 11 to spur people to repentance? How do you think we're different from the people of Nephi?
• What do you think happens when the majority of people choose iniquity?
• Why would one withhold a message of healing and hope for a week? Would you withhold a cure for cancer from stricken patients for a week?
• Have you or someone you trust had a dream of the future?
• When past prophets have petitioned God to help us repent, how did God respond to their prayer?

SOURCES

1.   Joel 2:12-13
2.   Helaman 11: 1-17
3.   https://www.worldometers.info/coronavirus/worldwide-graphs/#daily-cases
4.   https://youtu.be/tlcILxGmVrI
5.   Mormon 8:7; Ether 8:21
6.   Mosiah 29:27
7.   Helaman 5:2
8.   https://www.facebook.com/groups/LdsDreamDreams

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Prophets Who Don't Prophesy

If we've ever needed a prophet, now would be the time. 

With COVID-19, political and media deception, anarchy, riots and more, the words of the Lord, as delivered to us by a prophet, would be a welcome help.

The Tests of True Prophets

A prophet's job description has never wavered: They are "men called to speak for the Lord" who "testify of Jesus Christ and teach His gospel. They make known God's will and true character. They speak boldly and clearly, denouncing sin and warning of its consequences. At times, they may be inspired to prophesy of future events for our benefit." [1]  

Throughout the scriptures, when foreign armies or natural disasters threatened security, health or life, God frequently sent emissaries who issued urgent calls for people to turn away from sin and cast themselves upon the mercy of God. Think of calls to repentance in the face of disaster of Old Testament prophets such as Samuel [2], Isaiah [3], Jeremiah [4], Ezekiel [5], Daniel [6], Habakkuk [7], or Joel [8]; or of New Testament calls of John the Baptist [9], James [10], John the Revelator [11] and Jesus himself [12]. In the Book of Mormon, we have Nephi [13], Jacob [14], Mosiah [15], Alma [16], Helaman [17], Samuel the Lamanite [18], Mormon [19], Ether [20] and Moroni [21].

As I read the scriptures, prophets have consistently (1) been given a mission, directly from God, to preach to a people regarding their sinful state and the consequences of their sinfulness [22] if they don't repent, (2) delivered their message and (3) boldly declared that God sent them to deliver their message. Yet because their messages are rooted in inconvenient truths, they are almost universally (4) rejected by their divinely-appointed audiences and (5) often (though not always) paid for their directness with their lives. [23]

In the church's True to the Faith book (which I quoted above), "Moses, Isaiah, Peter, Paul, Nephi, Mormon" are also listed as examples of prophets. All of them did #1, #2 and #3. We know for a fact that Isaiah, Peter and Paul (and many others not listed here, including 11 of the 12 post-resurrection apostles and Brother Joseph) were rejected by their audiences (#4) and subsequently murdered by them (#5). 

I hope I have demonstrated that all throughout the scriptures, God's prophets were very direct in warning people of impending destruction, and what they needed to do to prevent it. In all these cases, it wasn't a deficiency in a certain quality (like gratitude) which was of concern to these prophets, but instead, good 'ol fashioned sin and pride.

The True Causes of Plagues and Pestilences

Often, God augments these prophets with natural calamities designed to stimulate a change of heart. Two of those are plagues [24] and pestilences [25]. These are not the result of a mutated virus released from a biomedical lab or animal market bats, but sins [26], unbelief in God [27] and not remembering him [28]. The remedy for these plagues and pestilences: "If my people, which are called by my name, shall humble themselves, and pray, and seek my face, and turn from their wicked ways; then will I hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin, and will heal their land." 

So, there's the carrot: The people called by his name must (1) humble themselves, (2) pray, (3) seek his face and (4) turn from their wicked ways. In return, God will (1) hear from heaven, (2) forgive their sin and (3) heal their land.  [29]

What's a good indicator when this hasn't happened? It's when God doesn't hear our prayers nor be moved by our fasts. The Lord said, "Thus saith the LORD unto this people, Thus have they loved to wander, they have not refrained their feet, therefore the LORD doth not accept them; he will now remember their iniquity, and visit their sins. Then said the LORD unto me, Pray not for this people for their good. When they fast, I will not hear their cry; and when they offer burnt offering and an oblation, I will not accept them: but I will consume them by the sword, and by the famine, and by the pestilence."  [30]

Here, we see that God will not accept our offerings nor acknowledge our fasts if we are what? If we are iniquitous and sinning. And for that, he will continue to visit us not only with pestilence, but also the sword and famine.

Now, Let's Look at Our Current Landscape

We live in a time when people are perfectly fine with electing leaders and judges who enthusiastically support murdering unborn children. These leaders accommodate and fund countries who are violently opposed to God, Christians and freedom. They ignore and remain silent as anarchist groups foment riots and violence in our neighborhoods. They espouse sexual education of kindergarteners and encourage them to reconsider their God-given genders. They corrupt our laws, processes and procedures and eliminate divinely-inspired constitutional rights, provisions and principles. They give preferential treatment for individuals based on the color of their skin, not the content of their character. They take away income rightfully earned by an individual and give it to another who has not earned it. They embrace socialist and even communist ideologies.

Within the church, we are still under condemnation for not taking the Book of Mormon seriously. Pornography has decimated huge swaths of Melchizedek and especially Aaronic Priesthood quorums. Headlines regularly highlight active bishops and local leaders for sex-related crimes.  

On top of all of that, we still have COVID-19. Let's look at the worldwide Coronavirus trendlines since the first (March 26, 2020 [31], blue line) and second (April 4, 2020 [32], red line) church-wide fasts. [33]

Again: God has said that if we -- the people called by his name -- humble ourselves, pray, seek his face and turn from our wicked ways, then he will hear from heaven, forgive our sin and heal our land. He's also said if we still have iniquity and sin, then he will not hear the cries of our fasts and he will not accept our offerings. 

Do these results indicate, in any way, shape or form, that God is healing our lands? Now, some may say, "Well, the fasts DID work, because these results could have been a lot worse." Aside from that being one heck of an assumption, the fasts didn't ask for a partial alleviation of COVID-19. They were "for relief from the physical, emotional, and economic effects of this global pandemic"[31] and "that the present pandemic may be controlled, caregivers protected, the economy strengthened, and life normalized."[32]

Aside from the above graphs, just a simple, casual trip to Walmart, Costco, your favorite dine-in restaurant or a movie theater will prove that COVID-19 isn't controlled. Caregivers are still raising concerns. The economy still hasn't returned to its pre-COVID heights and life is far from normal. Relief from the physical, emotional, and economic effects of this global pandemic is nowhere in sight.

Which brings us to…

A Day of Non-Warning

In his worldwide 11/20/2020 11am, 11-minute long worldwide message [34], Pres. Nelson laid out a strong case for his professional background as a medical expert. He also summarized his family life. In both cases, he was forced to confront disease and death among his patients, children and first wife.

Within seconds of its posting to YouTube, thousands of church members were praising him for his primary message: gratitude. As Thanksgiving is less than a week away, the message is entirely appropriate. 

Maybe it's just me, but something tells me that with all the sins listed above, plus this Coronavirus thing that's going on, man's ingratitude isn't the issue of the day. It's our continued sinful state and reluctance to change our hearts and repent. Do those trendlines show any progress in that regard?

Let's do a little hypothetical: Let's transport Isaiah, Jeremiah, Peter, Paul, Nephi, Alma, Mormon, Moroni and Joseph Smith back to our day, today. Judging by what they said in their times, what would be their messages today?

First, they would focus not on themselves, but Jesus Christ and his message to mankind. In this video, President Nelson spent 11 seconds on the actual "ills that plague our world, including hate, civil unrest, racism, violence, dishonesty, and lack of civility" (he included the pandemic as an ill, not an effect of a true illness, sin). He spent a grand total of 37 seconds on Jesus. And he spent 2 minutes 22 seconds talking about himself.

Granted, Pres. Nelson did mention repentance -- twice. In his first mention, he said "We can give thanks for the opportunity to repent, start over, make amends, and build character." Note that he didn't call us to repent; just that we should be grateful for repentance. In his second mention, he said "Wilt Thou also help us repent from selfishness, unkindness, pride and prejudice of any kind so that we can better serve and love one another as brothers and sisters and as Thy grateful children." Again, this is no call to repentance; it was a petition for God to help us repent.

Nowhere in his message does he mention the word "sin." No calls to humility or repentance. No seeking God's face.

He did, however, mention "gratitude" 11 times and "grateful" 8 times. 

You've known about the concept of gratitude since you were in primary. It's nothing new. 

What President Nelson's message did do is give us "a fast-acting and long-lasting spiritual prescription" which can "soothe our feelings and can "provide[s] us with a greater perspective on the very purpose and joy of life."

This, I believe, was deliberate. He said, "Over my nine and a half decades of life, I have concluded that counting our blessings is far better than recounting our problems."

Gratitude, social media blitzes, high-tech equivalents of the Rameumptom and virtue signaling are definitely NOT what God would be telling us to do to…they're not the "urgent and important" remedies for mankind's sins, and you know it. 

If anything, now is THE time for us to be counting our problems. Now is the time for humility, repentance and seeking God's face, not "soothed feelings." These days, mankind has indirectly been told by its governments to get less sunlight, smoke more weed and watch more Netflix instead of getting healthier. Today, you were told to ingest the spiritual equivalent of candy, chips, cookies, cake, ice cream, pie and soda pop, not a proven regimen of diet and exercise.

Face it: Denouncing sin and warning of its consequences is not a sound marketing strategy. I mean, who wants to be told that they are not right before God? With all the darkness, despair, disease and death in the world, additional rays of sunshine are now more readily appreciated and embraced than messages of God's displeasure and disdain for mankind.

You know…the messages true prophets of God have always been expected to pronounce.

"That this is a rebellious people, lying children, children that will not hear the law of the LORD:
Which say to the seers, See not; and to the prophets, Prophesy not unto us right things, speak unto us smooth things, prophesy deceits:
Get you out of the way, turn aside out of the path, cause the Holy One of Israel to cease from before us."  [35]

But if you look carefully, President Nelson did ask, "Wilt Thou also help us repent from selfishness, unkindness, pride and prejudice of any kind so that we can better serve and love one another as brothers and sisters and as Thy grateful children."

Because this issue isn't "mask or no mask" but is "repent or not", I believe that, oh yes, God will help us to repent from sin. Pres. Nelson's petition will be granted. But very likely, it will not be in the way Pres. Nelson is hoping.

God has been trying since the beginning of the year to help us repent. By the looks of it, we aren't listening to him. And the trendlines show we're not getting any better.

As we read earlier, God says of those whose fasts are not acknowledged: "I will consume them by the sword, and by the famine, and by the pestilence."

Thus, we're in a dilemma, a "Catch-22": If God doesn't hear the words of Pres. Nelson, then that's a serious situation, for Pres. Nelson is considered by millions as God's mouthpiece to the world. If God does hear his prayer, then God will be obliged to "help us repent." And just how does God help us, persuade us, to repent? Pestilences. Plagues. Fires. Floods. Tsunami. Earthquakes. Hurricanes. Tornadoes. Wars. Mobs. Famines. Solar disruptions. Asteroid hits.

Sometimes the most important catalyst for spiritual renewal is a cataclysmic event, where God doesn't decrease suffering. He INCREASES suffering.

Thanks Pres. Nelson. Because of your prayer, 2020 may easily end up looking like a day in the park compared to 2021 / 2022.

QUESTIONS

Based on the aforementioned facts, I have the following questions:

• Would you consider that mankind, as a whole, are in a sinful state?
• Does mankind need to take repentance more seriously?
• Who is the prophet that's currently filling a job description similar to past (scriptural) prophets? Please show me their prophecies.
• When was the last time that God commissioned a prophet to prophesy destruction to a people that's sinning?
• Has God used plagues and pestilences to spur people to repentance?
• Has he stopped doing so?
• Has God said that if we do not repent, he will not hear our prayers and fasts?
• By the looks of the COVID stats, has God heard our prayers and fasts?
• What does humanity need to do to get God to hear our fasts and prayers?
• Is "repentance" the primary message of the church's leaders today?
• Did Pres. Nelson ask God to help us repent?
• Just how does God help us, persuade us, to repent when not even plagues and pestilences are doing the trick?

SOURCES

 1.   "Prophets," True to the Faith, (2004), p. 129-30.
 2.   1 Samuel 7:3
 3.   Isaiah 1:24-27
 4.   Jeremiah 4:1-4
 5.   Ezekiel 33:11
 6.   Daniel 2:18; 9:3, 9, 17-18, 23
 7.   Habakkuk 3:2
 8.   Joel 1:13-14; 2:12-17
 9.   Matthew 3:5-12
10.   James (5:1-6)
11.   Revelation 2:5, 16, 21-22)
12.   Luke 13:1-5
13.   1 Nephi 7:13, 11:36
14.   Jacob 2:33, 3:1-3
15.   Mosiah 7:31, 29:27
16.   Alma 1:12, 4:11, 9:18, 10:18-27
17.   Helaman 8:5, 26
18.   Helaman 13:5-6
19.    Mormon 6:22
20.   Ether 8:23-25
21.   Moroni 8:27, 9:22
22.   2 Nephi 9:48
23.   Revelation 16:6; 1 Nephi 1:18-20.
24.   Zechariah 14:12, 15, 18; 2 Chronicles 21:14; Exodus 9:14; Numbers 11:33; Revelation 16:9, 21
25.   Exodus 9:14
26.   Mosiah 12:2-7; Helaman 11:15; D&C 97:26
27.   2 Nephi 6:15
28.   Helaman 12:3
29.   2 Chronicles 7:13
30.   Jeremiah 14:10-12
31.   https://www.churchofjesuschrist.org/church/news/president-nelson-invites-all-worldwide-to-fast-for-physical-spiritual-healing-in-response-to-covid-19?lang=eng
32.   https://www.churchofjesuschrist.org/church/news/president-nelson-asks-latter-day-saints-to-unite-our-faith-once-again-in-fast-on-good-friday?lang=eng
33.   https://www.worldometers.info/coronavirus/worldwide-graphs/#daily-cases
34.   https://youtu.be/tlcILxGmVrI
35.   Isaiah 30:9-11

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