Reading Scriptures

So the other day I was talking to my in-laws about scripture reading.  My DH and I are currently reading the Old Testament for our couple scripture study and we just finished Isaiah.  My in-laws commented on how they wished they could understand Isaiah better and I started to think, "What did I learn from Isaiah?"  Not a whole lot.  We just read it, we didn't discuss it or ponder it or learn from it, we simply read it.  I don't have a fear of Isaiah because I had a seminary teacher who loved Isaiah, and just his passion from it passed on to me so that  I don't fear it, but I wouldn't say that I take the time, study and spirit (see 2 Nephi 25:4) to understand it either.

I remember the first time I read through the Old Testament I had a much harder time understanding Jeremiah than Isaiah, so I've made it a point to try to understand Jeremiah.  What better time do I have to learn and discuss and question the scriptures than with my eternal partner?!:) And now we are only in chapter 6, but I feel like I am understanding Jeremiah!!:) 

Then the other night I was reading in my scriptures for my personal scripture study and I thought, I don't have very many questions, I want to learn.  So I started reading my scriptures with a desire to learn.  And then I read Mosiah 26:4 which says that if we know Christ than we are called.  So I wondered how do I know Christ?  So I did an index search of the word know and learned that we know Christ when we serve, by the Holy Ghost, and as a spiritual gift!:)

So I think that reading scriptures is way better than not doing anything, many days/nights I still just read my scriptures.  Sister Dalton challenged my stake to read 5 minutes every day and I can do that!!:)  And a seminary teacher challenged me to read every day even if it is only one verse, because one verse is better than not reading at all and it gets you in the habit. However, I know that studying and asking questions and seeking to understand is so much better for us!!:)  We can learn more from studying than we can from reading!!:)  And I think the Spirit is better able to guide us as we study and seek to know those things Heavenly Father would have us learn!!:)

Consumers

The other day I was cutting apples from my Grandma's tree to make homemade applesauce.  Many of the apples had worm holes and earwig holes that I had to cut out and it got me to thinking.  I didn't mind cutting out those holes and the destruction they caused because I knew that those holes were the result of pesticide free fruit!:)  Then I started thinking about when I go to the store.  Do I buy the fruit/vegetables that are bruised or damaged?  Most of the time I don't,  I spend extra time looking for the best looking fruit. That thought led to this next thought.  No wonder we use pesticides to get rid of bugs.  Consumers want bug free food, so to meet the demand of consumers, producers started using pesticides to get rid of the bugs so that they could sell enough product to make a profit.  That is when it hit me, I am part of the problem of pesticide-laden food.  It seems to me that we can't have it both ways, we can't have food that is pesticide AND bug free.  I feel bad for the farmers that are caught in this mixture of trying to meet all of consumer's wants.

Equality

Two things can be equal without being the same.  My favorite analogy of this is 4 quarters and a dollar bill.  They are worth the same, thus equal, but they can be used very differently.  Yes 4 quarters can fill in for a dollar bill, or a dollar bill can fill in for a quarter, but they have different purposes and are different, yet equal. 

In math you can have 2 equal equations that are not the same: x(x+2)=x^2+2x.  The left side of the equation is an easy way to find out what the equation equals when set to 0, but I'd rather substitute a number for x into the right side of the equation.  I'd also rather substitute the right side of an equation into another equation...

I was thinking this morning of going to Disneyland.  I've been to Disneyland many times, each time has been so much fun, equal in the level of fun, yet I've never gone to Disneyland with the same people, done the exact same rides, or had the same experience.

So why do we think that men and women have to do the same things to be equal?  I am no less equal than my husband because he has the priesthood.  I am no less equal than him because he goes to a job all day long and works to provide for our family.  I am no less equal than my husband because he has a master's degree.  I am DIFFERENT from my husband, but not unequal.  I bring different attributes and ideas to our marriage, but together we make harmony!:)  My husband sometimes plays the melody and sometimes I do, but we are united and strong, because we are different but equal. We both make major decisions for our family, we both share in the responsibilities of raising a family.  We both work together to make our marriage work, we both serve each other.  We are equal!!!:)