Motherhood

                Families, communities, and nations are strengthened when all individuals understand how God empowers women in motherhood. Motherhood is the most essential “career” for all women because we brought it from our pre-mortal life. “And Adam called his wife’s name Eve because she was the mother of all living” (Genesis 3:20). Adam said she was the “mother of all living” before Eve bore any children.

                Marie Bigelow posted an interesting article titled “3 Ways God Empowers Women in Motherhood.” She writes, “As a mother, doula, childbirth educator, and maternal-fetal health advocate, I have witnessed the magnification of mothers continually for over a decade. I have seen God’s hand in every aspect of raising the next generation. Here are three ways I continually see Heavenly Father strengthen and magnify mothers, grandmothers, sisters, aunts and female role models.”

                First, Bigelow states that “God foreordained all women to be mothers. Modern day revelation teaches us that all women were foreordained in the preexistence to become mothers, in more ways than just physically. As the family proclamation teaches, gender is part of our eternal identity. Meaning, our gender and accompanying attributes were laid out in the preexistence. God had already qualified and empowered all women to this demanding role and endowed all women, even those who do not physically give birth, with the ability to mother….”

                Second, Bigelow shares that “The Physiology of childbirth transforms and strengthens women. Despite cultural beliefs, the ability to bear children is not a curse. Childbirth was not a punishment placed upon women after Eve partook of the fruit but was a divine gift to humankind long before Eve was ever placed in the Garden. Though childbirth is anything but a curse, it is also anything but easy! Pregnancy and birth take a physical and emotional toll on women, but God has found many ways to strengthen and magnify His daughters during this trying, yet edifying experience. One notable example of this is the physiological design of childbirth and how God uses the chemical reactions of birth to magnify and strengthen our relationships….”

                Third, Bigelow says that “Nurturing children magnifies women. Taking care of children magnifies a woman in two ways: (1) Physiological bonding continues as women nurture and enjoy children, and (2) Christlike love is developed and strengthened through countless opportunities to serve. Whether a woman gives birth to her children or adopts them, she will physiologically bond with her children as she enjoys spending time with them as they grow. Teaching, nurturing, snuggling, singing, dancing, playing, and reading together will add happiness to family life as both mother and child are rewarded by these activities….”

                Bigelow’s entire article is very helpful in explaining how God empowers women in motherhood. She states that to “mother” is to “give life.” There are many ways that women give life – besides giving birth. Think of the many step-mothers and adopted moms that love children born to other women and give them “life” through nurturing them in the home. Think of the many teachers who welcome into their classrooms children from many walks of life and help them to become better people. Think of the many grandmothers and great-grandmothers who have great influence for good in the lives of their posterity.

                Motherhood is a part of womanhood and is empowered by God. When we realize the power in motherhood, we can strengthen our families, communities, and nations.

Freedom to Stand

                The liberty principle for this Freedom Friday is the simple fact that we are free to do just about anything we desire as long as it is legal and does not infringe on the rights of others. This freedom insures that Americans are free to stand for the national anthem or to sit or to kneel or to do whatever we desire. It also means that Americans are free to honor the flag or to stomp on it.

                I love to see the Stars and Stripes flying high above, and I always feel a tingle as I pledge allegiance to it. I learned the importance of pledging allegiance to the flag when I started first grade, and I have never forgotten it. I love the flag, I love the colors in the flag, and I love what the colors represent.

                In a day when numerous athletes and other people feel they need to use patriotism to protest some unfairness, I am always thrilled to learn of various members of the rising generation who have the courage to stand up for the flag.

                Just prior to a football game in Flint Township, Michigan, on August 31, 2016, the Lapeer Lightning freshmen football team was told that the national anthem would not be played before their game. The members of the team did not accept the reasons given for not playing the national anthem. They stood on the sidelines, saluted the flag, and sang the national anthem.

                Another football player stood for the flag under very difficult circumstances. Wesley Baker, a young man from South Carolina, was a high school football player in 2013 when he was hit by an 18-wheeler while walking along the highway. He miraculously survived the accident, but he lost a leg, received heavy trauma to the brain, and other injuries. Nineteen-year-old Baker recently attended a football game at his former high school. After three years of medical care, therapy, and persistence, Baker stood for the first time when he stood for the national anthem.

                Yes, Americans are free to do nearly anything we want to do. We are free to show courage and love for our nation or to show ingratitude for the great blessings we receive simply because we are Americans. We have a choice, and our choice shows our character.

Family Time

                This is a short note to my regular readers. I am entering into a period of several weeks of family time. I will continue to write and post when possible but may skip a few days between posts. Meanwhile, I hope that all of you spend quality time with your families.

Our Culture

                Have you ever wondered what happened to the culture of our nation? I have pondered the changes in the United States, and I have marveled at the speed of these changes. I found much understanding from an article explaining culture and corporations.

                Lou Gerstner writes about how the culture of our nation affects corporations in his article titled “The Culture Ate Our Corporate Reputation.” Gerstner is from the corporate world and could be prejudiced; however, my friend who spent his career in the corporate world confirms the truth of Gerstner’s words.

                Gerstner reminds his readers that many CEOs blame the employees when something goes wrong and used a recent problem in the banking industry as an example. “This is not the first time I have seen corporate leaders blame a flaw in the `culture’ for major shortfalls in their company’s performance. I believe this represents a serious misunderstanding of how institutional culture is created and the role it plays in defining corporate behavior.”

                After sharing various statements that corporations use such as “We work for our customers,” Gerstner states, “These statements are for the most part extraordinarily similar. But look inside these companies and you will learn that a common vocabulary does not lead to common behavior.

                “What is critical to understand here is that people do not do what you expect but what you inspect. Culture is not a prime mover. Rather it is a derivative. It forms as a result of signals employees get from the corporate processes that structure their work priorities.

                “Compensation is one of the most important of these processes. If the reward system pays a premium for one kind of behavior, that’s what will determine employee behavior – regardless of the words enshrined in the value statement….

                “It is the cumulative effect of all of these processes: compensation, performance measurement, recognition, etc. that shape what we describe as corporate culture.

                “So for any CEO who wants to understand the real cultural in his or her company: Do not look at the value statement in the new employee handbook. Go deep and understand what each process in the company is telling employees is important. Again, people do not do what you expect but what you inspect….”

                I learned from Gerstner’s article that “culture” comes from the CEO level and does not come from a desire or written policy. Culture seems to come about by what the people see, what the CEO rewards, and who receives favorable treatment by the CEO.

                The situation described by Gerstner can be seen in the world of dealing with children and teenagers. Wise parents and teenagers understand that they must reward good behavior and ignore bad behavior as much as possible. The behavior that gets attention is the behavior that continues. Sometimes, the behavior is so bad that it is difficult to find something to praise, but the reward of improved behavior comes when it is recognized.

                Taking this lesson from the corporate world into the political world, we can assume that the “culture” in our nation comes from the CEO of the United States – even Barack Obama. What do we see him doing? What behavior does he reward? To whom does he give favorable treatment?

                One glaring example is Hillary Clinton and all her scandals. Many people have served time in prison for doing less than Clinton has done with classified information. Another example is the “Black Lives Matter” movement and their destructive behavior. It seems that the Obama administration rewards lies and deceit, breaking laws, cheating, meanness, division, etc. We just have to remember that culture is a derivative of the CEO, and then we will know why the culture of our nation has sunk to such a low level.

George Soros

                I have wondered about George Soros for several years. Recently I read an article by Baxter Dmitry about Soros, and his article explains most of what I wanted to know. Dmitry says that Soros is “a god and created everything. I say that George Soros has a huge ego to compare himself to God, even the God of this land who is Jesus Christ.

                Apparently, Soros has compared himself to Deity for a long time. “If truth be known, I carried some rather potent messianic fantasies with me from childhood….” In an interview with a British newspaper, Soros said, “It is a sort of disease when you consider yourself some kind of god, the creator of everything, but I feel comfortable about it now since I began to live it out.”

                Soros is a billionaire who does not “believe that normal rules” apply to him. He has “enormous reserves of unethically earnt money at his disposal,” and he uses his money to destabilize nations. His latest “project” is to destabilize the United States. He makes enormous donations to various members of “the American ruling class.” He is part of the “shadow government” and works as a puppet master behind the scenes. He pulls the strings of all kinds of people in our government. He is one of Hillary Clinton’s biggest supporters, and supposedly, he gave her instructions as Secretary of State, which she carried out.

                I wonder if George Soros is the anti-Christ of our day. The scriptures are full of talk about an anti-Christ that will appear in the latter-day to fight against Christ and His work. Is Soros the major anti-Christ or simply one of the minor ones? What will be his impact if Clinton is elected as the next President of the United States?

Electoral College

                The topic of discussion for this Constitution Monday is the Electoral College and why we have it. Basically, the Electoral College is a group of electors appointed by their states. American citizens do not vote directly for president and vice president. They are represented by electors appointed by their states to cast votes in the Electoral College in election of the president and vice president.

                Billy Hallowell posted an article at the Deseret News titled “Why did the Founding Fathers choose the Electoral College for electing presidents?” He asked the question in a different manner in his article: “What exactly is the Electoral College – and why did the Founding Fathers embrace it instead of creating a direct presidential voting process?”

                Hallowell answered his questions by discussing some books written by Tara Ross, an attorney, an author, and a staunch defender of the Electoral College system. Ross has a new book for children titled, “We Elect a President: The Story of Our Electoral College.” It follows her nonfiction book for adults titled, “Enlightened Democracy: The Case for the Electoral College.”

                Ross notes that the Founding Fathers intentionally chose not to have a direct electoral process. “The most important thing to know about (the Founders) mindset as they were crafting our entire constitution … They were not trying to create a pure democracy…. We live in a country that has democratic principles, but also republican principles (like deliberation and compromise).”

                The Founding Fathers “studied history and knew that democracies could have pitfalls.” Ross explains, “They knew that in a pure democracy, 51 percent of the people can rule over 49 percent all the time without question, no matter how ridiculous their demands.”

                The Founding Fathers were intelligent, well-educated men. They studied the history of numerous ancient nations and numerous other subjects. They wanted something better than a pure democracy for their new nation, and they designed a democratic republic with some democratic principles and some republican principles.

Pride Leads to Destruction

                In April 1989 President Ezra Taft Benson gave a powerful address to members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. His talk, titled “Beware of Pride,”was recognized almost immediately as being a classic, one that would be referred to and quoted from for many years. A recent Ensign carried a shortened version of President Benson’s talk in an article titled “The Great Stumbling Block to Zion.” 

                In his talk President Benson reminds us that the Nephite nation destroyed itself because of pride. He read the words of the ancient prophet Mormon who explains in these words: “Behold, the pride of this nation, or the people of the Nephites, hath proven their destruction” (Book of Mormon – Another Testament of Christ, Moroni 8:27). President Benson than reminds us that the Lord also warns us to beware of pride. “Beware of pride, lest ye become as the Nephites of old” (Doctrine and Covenants 38:39).

                President Benson explains, “In the scriptures there is no such thing as righteous pride – it is always considered a sin…. Most of us think of pride as self-centeredness, conceit, boastfulness, arrogance, or haughtiness. All of these are elements of the sin, but the heart, or core, is still missing.

                “The central feature of pride is enmity – enmity toward God and enmity toward our fellowmen. Enmity means `hatred toward, hostility to, or a state of opposition.’ It is the power by which Satan wishes to reign over us.”

                So there it is: Pride is hatred, hostility, or opposition. Nations are divided because they hate God and other people who may be different – different in race, religion, income bracket, etc. Could this be why liberals and progressives do everything they can to divide the citizens of the United States?

                President Benson continues with his explanation of pride. “Pride is essentially competitive in nature. We pit our will against God’s. When we direct our pride toward God, it is in the spirit of `my will and not thine be done.’ … Our will in competition to God’s will allows desires, appetites, and passions to go unbridled…. The proud cannot accept the authority of God giving direction to their lives.” He suggested that enmity towards God includes “rebellion, hardheartedness, stiff-neckedness, unrepentant, puffed up, easily offended, and sign seekers. He says that “The proud wish God would agree with them. They aren’t interested in changing their opinions to agree with God’s.”

                This definition seems to fit the conditions in our nation at this time. The LGBT movement desires respect for their same-sex attractions and even demands society’s “blessing” on their same-sex unions by calling it “marriage.” They claim to not believe in God, hoping that their “non-belief” excludes them from His commandments.

                The other part of President Benson’s description of pride has to do with “enmity toward our fellowmen.” He says, “The proud make every man their adversary by pitting their intellects, opinions, works, wealth, talents, or any other worldly measuring device against others.” He quotes C.S. Lewis as saying, “Pride gets no pleasure out of having something, only out of having more of it than the next man….”

                The race problems in our nation are caused more by manipulation for gain than for actual racism. There is no doubt that racism exists in the United States, but it is not as abundant as the race-mongers would have us believe. I believe that there would be far fewer incidents of racism if the race-mongers would stay home. The “protesters” in Charlotte were not local people but people from other states brought into town on buses.

                So, how does pride destroy nations? President Benson explains that “Pride results in secret combinations which are built up to get power, gain, and glory of the world…. This fruit of the sin of pride, namely secret combinations, brought down both the Jaredite and the Nephite civilizations and has been and will yet be the cause of the fall of many nations. (See Ether 8:18-25.)” History tells us that nations that succumb to pride are ultimately destroyed.

                President Benson continues, “Pride is the universal sin, the great vice. Yes, pride is the universal sin, the great vice. The antidote for pride is humility – meekness, submissiveness….

                “God will have a humble people. Either we can choose to be humble or we can be compelled to be humble….

                “We can choose to humble ourselves by loving God, submitting our will to His, and putting Him first in our lives…. Let us choose to be humble. We can do it. I know we can.”

                Right now our nation is headed for very difficult times. I believe we are headed for something worse than the Civil War – another time when God humbled our nation. Our government is operating under the control of secret combinations and has much corruption. (Proof of the corruption is the fact that Hillary Clinton is not in prison!) I believe our lives will continue to be very difficult until we shut down the secret combinations and force the rule of law. We must humble ourselves and turn to the God of this land who is Jesus Christ – or be destroyed.