Past Timeless Thoughts

  A Tavern Puzzle Is A Powerful Lesson

Many years ago while our family was in Nauvoo we stopped by a small country store that had antiques. My wife looked at the homemade clothing, the kids looked at the homemade candy, and I found a display rack with metal Tavern Puzzles.

A Tavern Puzzle is a metal puzzle usually with two solid pieces like rings, rods, chains and other pieces about a foot or less in height. They look like something a blacksmith would have made by twisting the metal and interweaving the chains and rings in such way that it is not readily apparent how to separate them. It is a puzzle traditionally forged by blacksmiths in the 1800’s to amuse friends and generate conversation at country taverns and inns.

 

Always intrigued by puzzles, I picked up one of these and learned that to solve the puzzle you had to remove the heart from the other parts. So I began.

After about 5 minutes of twisting and turning and pulling and pushing with no success, the owner of the small store came by and said, “Can I help you solve that puzzle?” I said, “No, I’m fine. Thanks.” I kept working on it. The frustration started to mount. I had picked an easy one as I had seen that they had easy, medium, and hard puzzles. But if it was easy, the solution sure wasn’t!

I lost track of what my family was doing as my attention had focused on solving this puzzle. In another five minutes the owner came by again. “Are you sure I can’t help you?” And again I responded, “No, I’m fine, I think.” She smiled and left. Again, no luck and another five minutes passed. She came back and again the same question, but this time my answer was, “Thanks, I’ll figure it out on my own.” But I didn’t. The kids were now coming up to me and saying they wanted to go and I said, “Okay, in a few minutes.”  I was determined to solve that blanket-blank puzzle.

After about thirty minutes the owner again came by and asked again with a new twist.  After her usual “Can I help you?” she said, “Are you ready now for me to help you?” Always offering to help!  Was she mocking me? I couldn’t tell.  She seemed sincere and smiled pleasantly. In humility (after all it had been thirty minutes and many offers of help), embarrassment, frustration, and desperation I said “Yes.”

She took the puzzle in her hands and in about three seconds of moving the pieces—they came apart! “No way,” I said.  She smiled.  I was amazed, appreciative, and disbelieving but thankful for her help. She had me do it, and I was pleased, happy, and satisfied. My feelings of frustration melted away. And my family was overjoyed that we could all now leave the store and move on.

On the long drive back from Nauvoo I thought about that experience with the puzzle and the shopkeeper many times. It finally dawned on me that this experience was like our relationship with God. As we live our lives we encounter problems we cannot figure out or solve ourselves.

Periodically He asks us, in different ways, if we need His help. We say no and continue on, and on—until one day, perhaps even years later we accept God’s invitation to come to Him for help.  When we do, we find He can solve our problems quickly and in ways we never could have thought of or imagined on our own.

God and Jesus Christ are ALWAYS there for us. They are waiting patiently for the time when we are ready for them.  (DC 43:25)

And then I thought of my family, waiting for me in the shop to solve my puzzle, my problem, so we could move on together as a family to new experiences shared together. So many families have fathers, mothers, or kids who are dealing with problems, puzzles in their lives, on their own; caught up with the pride, the vanity, the egotism, thinking they can solve their own problems—or not even acknowledging they have a problem—while others wait . . . and wait . . . and wait.

I learned a greater truth that day in Nauvoo than just solving a puzzle.

~Brother Bruce Barton

 

Sciptures

DC 43:25    How oft have I called upon you by the mouth of my servants, and by the ministering of angels, and by mine own voice, and by the voice of thunderings, and by the voice of lightnings, and by the voice of tempests, and by the voice of earthquakes, and great hailstorms, and by the voice of famines and pestilences of every kind, and by the great sound of a trump, and by the voice of judgment, and by the voice of mercy all the day long, and by the voice of glory and honor and the riches of eternal life, and would have saved you with an everlasting salvation, but ye would not!

Psalms 119:77    Let thy tender mercies come unto me, that I may live: for thy law is my delight.

Isa. 55:3    Incline your ear, and come unto me: hear, and your soul shall live; and I will make an everlasting covenant with you, even the sure mercies of David.

Jer. 25:3    From the thirteenth year of Josiah the son of Amon king of Judah, even unto this day, that is the three and twentieth year, the word of the LORD hath come unto me, and I have spoken unto you, rising early and speaking; but ye have not hearkened.

Mt. 11:28    Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.

Jn. 7:37    In the last day, that great day of the feast, Jesus stood and cried, saying, If any man thirst, let him come unto me, and drink.

1 Ne. 8:15,18    And it came to pass that I beckoned unto them; and I also did say unto them with a loud voice that they should come unto me, and partake of the fruit, which was desirable above all other fruit.  And it came to pass that I saw them, but they would not come unto me and partake of the fruit.

2 Ne. 28:32    Wo be unto the Gentiles, saith the Lord God of Hosts!  For notwithstanding I shall lengthen out mine arm unto them from day to day, they will deny me; nevertheless, I will be merciful unto them, saith the Lord God, if they will repent and come unto me; for mine arm is lengthened out all the day long, saith the Lord God of Hosts.

3 Ne. 9:14    Yea, verily I say unto you, if ye will come unto me ye shall have eternal life.  Behold, mine arm of mercy is extended towards you, and whosoever will come, him will I receive; and blessed are those who come unto me.

3 Ne. 12:20    Therefore come unto me and be ye saved; for verily I say unto you, that except ye shall keep my commandments, which I have commanded you at this time, ye shall in no case enter into the kingdom of heaven.

Ether 4:13     Come unto me, O ye Gentiles, and I will show unto you the greater things, the knowledge which is hid up because of unbelief.

Ether 12:27    And if men come unto me I will show unto them their weakness.  I give unto men weakness that they may be humble; and my grace is sufficient for all men that humble themselves before me; for if they humble themselves before me, and have faith in me, then will I make weak things become strong unto them.

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Elder Bednar Uses Sticky Notes in his scriptures.

Past Timeless Thoughts

Vital Statistics

-Did you know that Coco Cola was originally green and had cocaine in it?

-Did you know that an ostrich’s eye is bigger than its brain?

-Did you know that there is no word in the English language that rhymes with orange…or silver?

-Did you know that Barbie has a last name?  It’s Roberts.

-Did you know that on the one-dollar bill there is an owl?  It’s in the top right corner.

-Did you know that a female praying mantis chews her partner’s head off during mating?

-Did you know it takes 3000 cows to supply the NFL with enough leather for a year’s supply of footballs?

There is so much information available in the world today.  But it isn’t all of equal value.  Some of it is interesting.  Some of it is even important.  But some of it is vital!  The knowledge that is vital is contained in our Standard Works.

Did you set a goal for 2013 to study your scriptures?
We hope so!

Joseph taught the Saints that knowledge was a necessary part of our mortal journey, for “a man is saved no faster than he [gains] knowledge,” [Joseph Smith, in History of the Church, 4:588.]  DC 131:6 tells us it is impossible to be saved in ignorance.

My daughter Alisa reminded me of this great quote by Marion G. Romney:  “I feel certain that if, in our homes, parents will read from the Book of Mormon prayerfully and regularly, both by themselves and with their children, the spirit of that great book will come to permeate our homes and all who dwell therein. The spirit of reverence will increase; mutual respect and consideration for each other will grow. The spirit of contention will depart. Parents will counsel their children in greater love and wisdom. Children will be more responsive and submissive to the counsel of their parents. Righteousness will increase. Faith, hope, and charity—the pure love of Christ—will abound in our homes and lives, bringing in their wake peace, joy, and happiness.” (Ensign, May 1980, p. 67).

These are amazing promises!

The word my daughter likes is permeate.  I used to make chili sauce every summer with the ripe tomatoes from the garden.  My kids swore they could smell it before they even walked in the house.  In fact, they said their hair and clothes and even the towels in the bathroom reeked of it.  That’s permeate!

What permeates your time, your home, your life?  Is it the vital truths of the scriptures?

~ Sister Pat Barton

D&C 130:18-19  “Whatever principle of intelligence we attain unto in this life, it will rise with us in the resurrection.  And if a person gains more knowledge and intelligence in this life through his diligence and obedience than another, he will have so much the advantage in the world to come.”

 

ScriptureKIT^TM Books 1 and 2 Installed

 

These photos are of different sizes and styles of scriptures with ALL of the pages from ScriptureKIT Book 1 and Book 2 installed.

Some have wondered what the effect of adding pages to their scriptures would be.  As you can see, there isn’t a problem.

We would like to emphasize our recommendation to use the

Large Print Size Bible and Triple Combination

for your scripture study.  Click here to see a short video about why we recommend this set of scriptures.

 

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Nothing

One year while I was Christmas shopping, I came across the weirdest thing I have ever seen.  

 It was nothing.  Literally nothing!

It was a piece of cardboard packaging with a clear plastic “bubble” sticking out of it that contains nothing. Technically, I guess there is something in there, but it is the same as what is outside of it—thin air.

Get this.  It cost $10! TEN DOLLARS FOR NOTHING! (It’s “nothing” for something!)

I couldn’t believe it!

Look!  Here is the picture of nothing…..

I guess some suckers are buying it.  After all, it may be the perfect gift for the guy or gal who already has everything.

You know where this is going.  Right?

Isaiah 55:8-9:  Wherefore do ye spend money for that which is not bread? and your labour for that which satisfieth not? hearken diligently unto me, and eat ye that which is good, and let your soul delight itself in fatness.

The Christmas season is always the busiest time of year.  Most of us work hard to make it a wonderful holiday for our families but sometimes what we do and what we buy fails to satisfy the deepest spiritual longings of our hearts.  What God offers us now and all year long we can buy “without money and without price.” (Isaiah 55:1)

“Something” for nothing!

SO much better than a package of nothing!

P.S. I found “nothing” on sale this year for the bargain price of $6.28!

 

~ Sister Pat Barton

 

Think to Thank

I tended three of my grandkids last week while their parents were out of town.  For Family Home Evening on Monday night I said:  “Who wants to be glorious?” They all said they did so I quoted this scripture to them.

D & C 78:19 – “And he who receiveth all things with thankfulness shall be made glorious; and the things of this earth shall be added unto him, even an hundred fold, yea, more.”

I asked them what they thought the word glorious meant.  One of them said, “Awesome in every way.”  Sounded good to me.

Then we talked about what it meant to receive all things with thankfulness, …not just the good things but even the challenging aspects of our lives.  After that we wondered about and discussed the things of this earth that might be “added unto” us…..and what else besides those things would constitute the “yea, more” part of the scripture.

I asked:  “Is God telling us to say thank you to Him or do you think more than that is required?”  We decided that truly taking the time to notice and appreciate the many miracles of our lives is wonderful. Acknowledging that it all comes from God is also important.  Acting on our gratitude by serving others is even better.

As we started to work on memorizing the scripture I told them they should try saying some prayers of gratitude this month and just thank God for some of the things we don’t usually think to thank him for.  Leave out all the “please bless this and please bless that.”

As I put my 8-year old grandson to bed, I listened to his prayer of thanks.  He did a great job!  He said thanks for their home, his bedroom, his bed, warm blankets and a pillow. But I really knew he had taken the lesson to heart when he said, “Thank you for the trees and the leaves and the carbon dioxide they get and the oxygen they give so we can breathe.” J I almost laughed out loud!

(Somewhere there’s a second or third grade teacher who would be very pleased to know that one of her students remembers something she taught him!)

But he had the right spirit!  There are so many blessings, and  “Ordinary Miracles” that happen in our lives every day that we take for granted.  Sarah McLachlan sings a song by that name. You can listen to it on YouTube – click here.

 

Some of the lyrics say:

It’s not that unusual when everything is beautiful.

It’s just another ordinary miracle today.
The sky knows when it’s time to snow.

Don’t need to teach a seed to grow.

It’s just another ordinary miracle today.
Life is like a gift they say – wrapped up for you everyday.

Open up and find a way to give some of your own.
Isn’t it remarkable …like every time a raindrop falls?

It’s just another ordinary miracle today.
Birds in winter have their fling…will always make it home by spring….

Sun comes up and shines so bright

And disappears again at night.

It’s just another ordinary miracle today.

 

Happy Thanksgiving Everybody!

 

~ Sister Pat Barton

Veteran’s Day

Like many of you, my thoughts have dwelt on our veterans this weekend.  Two stories in particular have touched my heart.  These men may not have crossed your mind, but to me – they are the perfect representation of a Veteran of this great land.

The first soldier is a man of fearless dedication to his country.  As a soldier and leader in his part of the military, he fought and prayed many days for the freedom and liberty of those who stood beside him and their family and friends back home.

At a particular low point, his group of soldiers were nearly destitute.  They had been fighting for weeks, had marched mile after mile and were cut off from supplies and relief troops.  The site before him was full of ragged men – hungry, exhausted and quickly loosing hope.

In a moment of desperation and anger this soldier rose and presented the flag.  He talked of home, family, freedom and the God who made it all possible.

His determination to protect freedom at any cost saved his men, encouraged others to join them and eventually defeated the enemy.

What was the flag he raised?  We know it as the Title of Liberty.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The second story is from desertlocalnews.com (click here for the original article).

“You might remember a news story several months ago about a crotchety old man who defied his homeowners association and refused to take down the flagpole on his property and the large flag that flew on it. Now you can find out who, exactly, that old man was.

On June 15, 1919, Van T. Barfoot was born in Edinburg — probably didn’t make much news back then.   Twenty-five years later, on May 23, 1944, near Carano, Italy, Van T. Barfoot, who had enlisted in the US Army in 1940, set out to flank German machine gun positions from which fire was coming down on his fellow soldiers. He advanced through a minefield, took out three enemy machine gun positions and returned with 17 prisoners of war.

If that wasn’t enough for a day’s work, he later took on and destroyed three German tanks sent to retake the machine gun positions.

That probably didn’t make much news either, given the scope of the war, but it did earn Van T. Barfoot, who retired as a colonel after also serving in Korea and Vietnam, a Congressional Medal of Honor.

What did make news was a neighborhood association’s quibble with how the 90-year-old  veteran chose to fly the American flag outside his suburban Virginia home. Seems the rules said a flag could be flown on a house-mounted bracket, but, for decorum, items such as Barfoot’s 21-foot flagpole were unsuitable.

He had been denied a permit for the pole, erected it anyway and was facing court action if he didn’t take it down. Since the story made national TV, the neighborhood association has rethought its position and agreed to indulge this old hero who dwells among them.

“In the time I have left I plan to continue to fly the American flag without interference,”  Barfoot told The Associated Press.   As well he should.  And if any of his neighbors still takes a notion to contest him, they might want to read his Medal of Honor citation. It indicates he’s not real good at backing down.

Van T. Barfoot’s Medal of Honor citation:

This 1944 Medal of Honor citation, listed with the National Medal of Honor Society, is for Second Lieutenant Van T. Barfoot, 157th Infantry, 45th Infantry:

A Real Hero Has Died….
VanT. Barfoot died at the age of 92 on 2 March 2012.”

 

Both Moroni and Mr. Barfoot used a flag to inspire patriotism.  Symbolism is a powerful way to remind us to continually align our lives with the Lord and righteousness.

All history tells us that valiant people have defended their homelands and their freedoms.  Are we doing our part?

 

Alma 46:12-13: “And it came to pass that he rent his coat; and he took a piece thereof, and wrote upon it – In memory of our God, our religion, , and freedom, and our peace, our wives, and our children – and he fastened it upon the end of a pole. . . and he bowed himself to the earth, and he prayed mightily unto his God for the blessings of liberty to rest upon his brethren, so long as there should a band of Christians remain to possess the land”

~ Sister Tiffany Birrell

 

Zion—or a feather bed?

Many Saints were migrating to Zion, which had been established in what is now known as “Utah.” So anxious were we all to join the Saints, that we were willing to accept any kind of transportation, to make the trip. Just at this time, the “Handcart Method” had been adopted and we were grateful for even this mode of transportation to travel. We expected the handcarts to be ready, but they were not. We were delayed in Iowa City. Handcarts had to be made, supplies gathered, oxen caught and broken to pull the heavy supply wagons, everything that even hinted of being a luxury, must be eliminated. There were many keepsakes that I wanted to take, but couldn’t. But there was one thing I didn’t consider a luxury and that was my feather-bed. I had hung onto that beloved item from the time of the auction in England and now clearly there was no room for it. It wouldn’t be bad to walk 1300 miles if one had a feather-bed to sleep on at night, but no matter how I folded it, it was too bulky. Wouldn’t it be just wonderful I thought, if I could deflate it in the morning and inflate it at night, so it would pack compactly. But a feather-bed is a feather-bed and when it came to choosing between Zion and a feather-bed, well it was a little too late to turn my back on Zion, so I ripped it open and emptied the feathers on the ground and used the tick to cover the supplies on the handcart.1