While I Was Reading Sunday- John 3

 While I was reading in the Gospel of John I especially enjoyed the many references to light and dark. John makes use of these symbols almost like a theme to his entire account of the Savior's life. In chapter three Nicodemus comes to the Savior in the dark, perhaps to avoid other Jews from seeing him with Jesus. Nicodemus will be leaving enlightened by the message of everlasting life through a spiritual birth.

    John 3:3 "Jesus answered and said unto him, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God."

   A natural man or woman, being in spiritual darkness, cannot even see the kingdom of God around them. A change must occur much like what occurs during mortal birth in order for us to see and enter.

   John 3:5 "Jesus answered, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born of water and of the Spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God."

   A baby, in an environment of darkness, must come out of the water, out of his mother, who spills her own blood to bring him to life. So we at baptism come out of the water, with the assistance of the Savior, Jesus Christ, through his spilled blood, to enter a pathway which eventually leads to life with Him and like Him

 Enoch, citing the teachings of Adam, elaborated on the doctrine: “As ye were born into the world by water, and blood, and the spirit, … even so ye must be born again into the kingdom of heaven, of water, and of the Spirit, and be cleansed by blood … ; for by the water ye keep the commandment; by the Spirit ye are justified and by the blood ye are sanctified” (Moses 6:59–60). So I take this to mean that our spiritual rebirth starts with baptism,  then upon receiving the Holy Ghost, His influence starts a change within us that makes us "right" or justified, and finally the atonement cleanses the complete inner vessel. 

   After having given the greatest gift of his Son, the Father provides a sequel, the next greatest gift: everlasting life—his kind of life—for all his children 

   John 3: 16 "For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life."

  Why would we pass on this amazing gift? Here John comes back to the contrast between light and dark.

 John 3:19 "And this is the condemnation, that light is come into the world, and men loved darkness rather than light, because their deeds were evil. For every one that doeth evil hateth the light, neither cometh to the light, lest his deeds should be reproved. But he that doeth truth cometh to the light, that his deeds may be made manifest, that they are wrought in God. "

  As much as seeing my inadaquacies and weaknesses makes me feel vulnerable, being in the light is preferable. I come to Jesus like Nicodemus, hiding my sins but needing to be with Him more than protecting myself.

Search Or Organize

    I thought of a new seminary game this morning to support learning key words of the Scripture Mastery and learning the books of the New Testament. The game is called Search or Organize. Divide into two teams. One team receives key word clues and the other team tries to put the cups listing the Books of the New Testament in order. When all the members of the Search team are on the mastery scripture page the round ends. 

                                  Who was first to finish? The Searchers or the Organizers?

Visiting Teachers

     This morning as I was searching online I glanced up from the screen and these beautiful flowers came into focus. They were from my Visiting Teachers and I am so glad they came to see me. Visiting Teaching is a program in my church for every woman, eighteen years and older. Two women come together to visit and lift my spirits. They come every month, or so, and I look forward to the time we spend. I am very selfish when they come because I have fun things to share with them. The discussion is usually about me, how I'm feeling, what I am doing, or what I might need. My two friends really want to know and I have learned to trust them. There is an art to being a Visiting Teacher and it starts with being open and interested in others. There is also an art to being the recipient of Visiting Teachers. It can be a vulnerable thing to have others in your home and "checking you out".  Really it is all about looking for the best in others and validating each other as women who care.

                                                                What is not to like about that?

A Serendipitous Event (Or Two)

   Sometimes in the meanest of places you can find serendipity. I have a real mess in my front yard. It could have been a weeding job but now it may require excavation. Blackberries are a conundrum here. We hate them, they are the meanest weed, but we love their fruit.

                                    I walked by there and noticed some pink peeking through.

                              What is this bulb rising up at the end of September. Who planted it?

                     Well, what a sight to behold and what serendipity to have blossoms now.

                    For a second even more fortuitous event click here. You won't believe it.

On Being Creative

My daughter brought home a bunch of garlic and left it on the kitchen table. Not knowing what she had planned for these bulbs I grabbed a vase and plopped them inside. Stepping back I thought how marvelous they looked as a harvest bouquet. 

 
   I have a nature theme going on my fireplace mantel and they fit right in. The older I get the more I trust my eye and I find that I appreciate my own creativity. I remember wanting others to validate that I was artistic and I copied more than created. The time has come for me to turn off the "others" and enjoy what I see. I have no need to be cool, just inspired.

More Seminary Readiness Activities

   I believe in having readiness activities everyday. Here are some more I'm using in my class. Adapt them to your lesson or use them as is.
  
 1.Hidden Word Game-  Can you find the hidden word in this sentence?
           Rubarb apt. is my favorite location.

   2.Scanning- Assign to each student upon entering class a section, paragraph, page etc. for reading or looking at material quickly to gain an overview of the content. Can note, share with a partner, or discuss with class

   3. Surveys- Hand out a mini-survey at the beginning of a unit, topic, etc. that asks for opinions and knowledge concerning the subject material. Topic: Temptations of Christ.
       
                                                            Mini Survey

           1. Which would entice you away from reading your scriptures at lunch?
                   a. The Candy Machine
                   b. The People Watching You
                   c. The Chance To Talk To Friends
                         100% picked C

           2. What would make you turn off an inappropriate movie?
                    a. Your Mother Bribing You With A Treat     
                    b. If The Girl Next To You Asks You To
                    c.  Knowing That Others Around You Feel They Should, As Well
                            100% picked C

            3. What Would Stop You From Fasting?
                   a. Hunger
                   b. Your Father's Hounding You
                   c. Being Told You Have To By Your Seminary Teacher
                          40% picked B and 60% picked A 

              4. Why Would You Choose To Miss Seminary?
                   a. You Need Sleep
                   b. Your Friends At School Think It's Lame
                   c. You Want An A In Algebra
                          40% picked C and 60% picked A

   4. Word Splash- Prepare a collection of key terms from a written passage which the students are about to read and give as they enter the class. The terms selected represent important ideas that the teacher wants students to attend to when they actually do the reading later, but initially the students' task is to make predictive statements about how each of the terms relates to the title of the reading. Display selected terms randomly and at angles on a visual (overhead or chart). Students brainstorm and generate complete statements (not just words or phrases) which predict the relationship between each term and the topic. Once students have generated statements for each term they turn to the printed material, read to check the accuracy of their predictive statements and revise where needed. "Splash" refers to the random arrangement of the key terms around the topic at the start of the activity.

    We are using journaling on a regular basis. I try to teach how to journal by giving note tips once a week. On that day we fill out a page together, write in scripture references, and take time to add thoughts and feelings. I use the journal notes as quiz questions every two weeks to show the value of taking good notes in seminary.

The Woodpile

   So yesterday I woke up with a large rash on the trunk of my body. I had been down sick with chills and a cold the two days before. A little flag went off in my head and brought up the word "Shingles". I googled it and found I had all the pre-conditions and many symptoms. So, I started the process of getting hold of the doctor, which is difficult on a Monday morning. While I kept trying the phone, I doctored the rash myself with Lavender oil and ointment. The pain and irritation went away and two hours later, still no doctor, I listened to my body and it whispered, 'Peace".  What futurizing I had been doing, thinking I might be in pain with chicken pox breaking out everywhere. What I learned from this experience is don't start burning wood until the weather turns cold.

    I am facing the prospect of starting the wood stove up. We burn with wood because our electric base heaters are really old and cost an atrocious amount of money. So we gathered our wood through the summer and it is dry now. Soon I will build the first fire and it will be fun at the beginning but then the fun will turn into a chore. A daily, ongoing, chore which warms the toes and keeps us happy through the winter.