Economic Armageddon

I hope this guy is wrong. But his past track record doesn't give me much hope.

Earthquakes in history

Here's an interesting graph showing earthquakes between magnitudes 6 and 8 for the past 100 years

http://www.thehorizonproject.com/earthquakes.cfm

This reminds me of D&C 88: 89-91:

89    For after your testimony cometh the testimony of earthquakes, that shall cause groanings in the midst of her, and men shall fall upon the ground and shall not be able to stand.

90    And also cometh the testimony of the voice of thunderings, and the voice of lightnings, and the voice of tempests, and the voice of the waves of the sea heaving themselves beyond their bounds.
91    And all things shall be in commotion; and surely, men’s hearts shall fail them; for fear shall come upon all people.

Pres. Hinckley Confirms Joel's vison is fullfilled

These truly are the last days. And one need look no further to figure that out than to hear the words of President Hinckley, who spoke in the October Conference just after 9/11:

The era in which we live is the fulness of times spoken of in the scriptures, when God has brought together all of the elements of previous dispensations. From the day that He and His Beloved Son manifested themselves to the boy Joseph, there has been a tremendous cascade of enlightenment poured out upon the world. The hearts of men have turned to their fathers in fulfillment of the words of Malachi. The vision of Joel has been fulfilled wherein he declared:

"And it shall come to pass afterward, that I 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.
"And I will shew wonders in the heavens and in the earth, blood, and fire, and pillars of smoke.
"The sun shall be turned into darkness, and the moon into blood, before the great and the terrible day of the Lord come.
"And it shall come to pass, that whosoever shall call on the name of the Lord shall be delivered: for in mount Zion and in Jerusalem shall be deliverance, as the Lord hath said, and in the remnant whom the Lord shall call" (Joel 2:28–32).

President Hinckley - Living in the Fulness of Times - October 2001

Interesting quote by Elder Packer in Priesthood Session

“Your generation is filled with uncertainties. A life of fun and games and expensive toys has come to an abrupt end. We move from a generation of ease and entertainment to a generation of work and responsibility. We do not know how long that will last."

I know that many people are somewhat frustrated that the Brethren do not say more about the coming calamities and signs of the times, but I really think they are being restrained by the Lord. However, every once in a while, they will slip little hints for those with ears to hear.

Well if that wasn't a sign, I don't know what is.

In an earlier post, I linked to an article that demonstrated the significance of April 6th. But it still came as a surprise when I woke up saw the reports of a massive earthquake in Italy that leveled entire towns, killing over 200 and leaving over 50,000 people homeless. My prayers go out to those affected, but I can't help but be reminded of the words of the Lord in the Doctrine and Covenants section 88: 89-90

88 And after your testimony cometh wrath and indignation upon the people.

89 For after your testimony cometh the testimony of earthquakes, that shall cause groanings in the midst of her, and men shall fall upon the ground and shall not be able to stand.

90 And also cometh the testimony of the voice of thunderings, and the voice of lightnings, and the voice of tempests, and the voice of the waves of the sea heaving themselves beyond their bounds.


These truly are the last days.

Getting prepared $5 at a time

Maybe forking over $500 for food storage is a bit intimidating, but not if you do a little at a time. The $5 plan means each time you go shopping for the week you buy one extra item that costs $5 or less. Here's a good starter list I found on a preparedness forum.

FOOD ITEMS

• Five packages of Idahoan instant potatoes (flavored)
• A case of ramen noodles (20 pkgs)
• five cans of sardines
• five gallons of purified water
• nearly two cases of bottled water
• four cans of peaches, pears or fruit cockatail
• 2 jars of mandarin oranges
• five pounds of rice
• three to four pounds of spaghetti
• Two cans of spaghetti sauce
• three bags of egg noodles
• eight packages of gravy mix
• four cans of whole or sliced new potatos
• four cans of green beans or at least three cans of carrots, greens, peas or mixed veggies
• Two cans of Yams
• six cans of pork and beans
• one 40 ounce can of Dinty Moore Beef Stew
• Two 12 ounce cans of chicken, tuna or roast beef
• One 1lb canned ham
• three cans of refried beans
• three 12 oz cans of raviolis or spaghetti O's.
• Two 12.5 ounce cans of Salmon
• Five pounds of Oatmeal
• Four packages Dinty Moore heat and eat meals
• five packages of corn bread mix
• Four pounds of Sugar
• Five pound of Flour
• 1.5 quarts of cooking oil
• three one pound bags of dry beans
• two cans of apple juice
• a jar of peanut butter
• two boxes of yeast
• two bags of generic breakfast cereal
• 10 8 oz cans of tomato paste/tomato sauce
• four cans of soup
• four cans of Chunky soup
• 25lbs of Salt (at Costco) or 8-10 lbs at most supermarkets.
  
• two bottles of garlic powder or other spices
• Two boxes of kool aid
• A can of coffee
• 2 bottles of powdered coffee creamer

Non-Food Items

• one manual can opener
• two bottles of camp stove fuel
• 100 rounds of .22lr ammo
• 25 rounds of 12 ga birdshot or small game loads
• 20 rounds of Monarch 7.62x39 ammo
• a spool of 12lb test monofilament fishing line
• 2 packages of hooks and some sinkers or corks.
• artificial lure
• two packages of soft plastic worms
• three Bic Lighters or two big boxes of matches
• A package of tea lights
• 50 ft of para cord
• a roll of duct tape
• a box of nails or other fasteners
• a flashlight
• two D-batteries, four AA or AAA batteries or two 9v batteries
• a toothbrush and tooth paste
• a bag of disposable razors
• eight bars of ivory soap (it floats)
• a box or tampons or bag of pads for the ladies
• two gallons of bleach
• needles and thread
• a ball of yarn

OTC Medications (at Dollar General)

• 2 bottles 1000 count 500 mg generic Tylenol (acetometaphin)
• 2 bottles 500 count 200 mg generic advil (ibuprofen)
• 2 boxes 24 cound 25 mg generic Benadryl (diphenhydramine HCI)--also available at walgreens under "sleep aids."
• 4 bottles 500 count 325 mg aspirin
• 2 boxes of generic sudafed
• 4 bottles of alcohol
• a box of bandages (4x4)

Gay bigots attack LDS Church in Washington...again

***Warning. Explicit language on this site***

http://news.infoshop.org/article.php?story=20081214194314979

Excerpt:

"We had a great last night sneaking about in snow covered Olympia. We paid another visit to the bigots over at the Mormon Church. We covered their building with messages in spray paint, such things as there is no sin in your desire, love who you want to love and love how you please, sex is fun! Its not shameful, queer and trans insurrection and many, many, many, many others. We also left them a surprise, its a pretty big one, we think theyll notice it within a few days. The Mormons are an atrocious bunch and, well, it just felt amazing to $@#! up their holy place, especially on an early Sunday morning with the snowflakes glistening in the street lamps."

Here's the supporting newspaper artice: http://www.theolympian.com/southsound/story/700466.html

Next battle may be in Florida

MIAMI – A judge on Tuesday ruled that a strict Florida law that blocks gay people from adopting children is unconstitutional, declaring there was no legal or scientific reason for sexual orientation alone to prohibit anyone from adopting.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20081125/ap_on_re_us/gay_adoptions

Legislating Immorality

Here's a fantastic editorial by the national review:

Excerpt:

To date, 30 states have voted on initiatives addressing same-sex marriage, and in every state traditional marriage has come out on top. But somehow the fact that Mormons got involved during the latest statewide referendum constitutes a bridge too far? In truth, Mormons are a target of convenience in the opening salvo of what is sure to be a full-scale assault on much of America’s religious infrastructure, which gay activists perceive as a barrier to their aspirations. Among religious groups, Mormons are not the biggest obstacle to same-sex marriage — not by a long shot. But they are an easy target. Anti-Mormon bigotry is unfortunately common, and gay-rights activists are cynically exploiting that fact. 


Read the whole article here:

http://article.nationalreview.com/?q=YTU5MjZmMDIyMDU3NjRiMjBlNjcxYTlmOGQ2ODA5NjA

A letter from a temple worker

Date: Saturday, November 15, 2008, 6:16 PM

My dear family, brothers and sisters, friends and leaders:

My heart is overflowing with joy and gratitude to our Heavenly Father for His tender mercies and mighty miracles in our behalf. I just have to share this with you. As most of you know, I am aTemple ordinance worker and work the morning shift in the LA Temple every Saturday. Today, I had the privilege of translating sister Martz-the new assistant Matron's-message during our devotional. She started like this "The prophet Joseph Smith said that no unhallowed hand would be able to stop this Work from progressing. These past few weeks when mobs have combined and armies have gathered against the saints, the Lord has protected His house". She went on to say that those, like her, who were inside the Temple when mobs were surrounding it, did not realize how scary and terrifying this looked on TV to the rest of us, because inside the House of the Lord all was calm and there was peace abundant. After Proposition 8 passed, the Temple began receiving threatening calls and mail from those opposing it. They were warned that more than 5000 people would come to the Temple and burn it to the ground, and stop Its work.

The first Thursday when the mob came, the new LA Temple President called the Salt Lake City Temple Offices for instructions. He was instructed to call the local police and to insure the safety of those attending the Temple by closing the gates. The assistant Matron said today, that it was a tender mercy from the Lord that the mob chose that Thursday to come since they had only one person coming to receive his own endowment that day, which he received in time to leave
before trouble started. The LAPD and the FBI responded quickly to the Temple Presidency's summons and patroled the grounds and kept the mob from entering the same. Most of them had never been there before and expressed their surprise at how beautiful and peaceful all around was. They were invited to come back during the Christmas season to see the lights and they promised they would.

On Thursday, November 13th, sister Campbell, a secretary in the Temple, was opening the mail and upon opening a large manila envelope found inside a smaller one. When she opened this one, a white powder flew all around her desk. She thought this could be related to the demonstrators and feared the worst-ANTRAX. She contacted the President, who in turn called the Salt Lake CityTemple office again for instructions. The FBI, the LAPD, and even the SWAT teams were once again in the grounds to investigate, and the Temple once again had to close from around 11:30 AM to 5PM. They closed the gates and were instructed to keep all the people there wherever they were found at the time. Those in the parking lot had to remain in the parking lot. Those entering theTemple had to remain in the first floor and those already upstairs were taken to the Celestial Room.

Then, the miracles began to happen: A brother serving as a recorder that day is a Microbiologist by profession and used to deal with hazardous substances every day. He was the first to say the white powder in the envelope was only talc, and put every one at ease. Then the sister coordinator upstairs was impressed to call upstairs to the sealing area, and said "They said we can't go down but no one said we can't go up, and I have many people in the Celestial room with their ceremonial clothes on ready to work. Could they do some sealings?" As it happened, there were four sealers present that day and they ran four sealing sessions non stop while the Temple was closed. Downstairs, someone else thought to invite those in the Lobby to do some initiatories, which they promptly did for all those hours too, brothers and sisters alike.

Among those waiting in the parking lot there was a large group of young men and women with their leaders who had come to do Baptisms for the dead, and who waited patiently all those hours and decided when the Temple was reopened to go ahead and fulfill their assignment instead of driving back home. The Temple reopened in time for the 5:30 PM session. The next day when recording the ordinances, they discovered that they had performed 2000 sacred ordinances on Thursday, only one less than the day before when three stakes had been visiting the Temple. Once again the assistant matron reminded us of the words of the prophet Joseph Smith, "No unhallowed hand can stop the Work from progressing...".

But, this is not all, a prophecy was fulfilled also. When the new LA Temple President was set apart by President Uchdorft of the First Presidency, he received a blessing and these words were pronounced: " The time has come for the LA Temple to come out of obscurity and become an Ensign for Righteousness to the world under your Presidency." The pictures of the Temple have been shown on TV, newspapers and the internet, not only in this country but worldwide. People of other faiths have called and sent letters to the Temple thanking the Church for defending marriage and protecting the family, and commenting how impressed they are by how beautiful and majestic the Temple looks . One minister of an African American church, who by his own admission had harbored ill feelings against the mormons before said " I am impressed by your integrity and Christ like behavior, and even if I am not ready to consider you my brothers and sisters in Christ, we can be first cousins!".

I asked the assistant matron if I could share her comments and she said to go ahead. I can only add my own testimony that I know the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints has the power and authority of God on earth. God Lives and Jesus, His only Begotten Son and our Savior is coming soon to redeem His people. I am grateful to know this and I pray we stand firm, steadfast and immobile while the prophecies of the signs before His Coming are fulfilled. "Be not afraid, only believe" He has said, and also " What I the Lord have spoken, I have spoken, and I excuse not myself; and though the heavens and the earth pass away, my word shall not pass away, but shall all be fulfilled, whether by mine own voice or by the voice of my servants, it is the same." I testify that this is true and testify it in the Holy Name of Whom I strive to serve, even Jesus Christ. Be faithful and safe is my humble prayer. Your sister in Christ,

Here's the full story of the Christian group that was assaulted

Read the full story here: http://www.jhopsf.org/

For those who missed it, here's my post with the video: http://renman.blogspot.com/2008/11/this-is-getting-out-of-control.html

Ogden police investigate fire at LDS Institute

Ogden police are investigating a bizarre fire at an LDS Institute of Religion building near Weber State University.

Police said someone doused a plastic flower arrangement with an accelerant and lit it on fire inside the Institute's lobby on Sunday night.


http://www.deseretnews.com/article/1,5143,705264285,00.html

Locust swarms plague Australia

Some swarms over 3 miles long

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/asia-pacific/7735003.stm

Secular arguments against Same Sex Marriages

As far as I'm concerned, the religious arguments against same sex marriage is enough. However, sometimes you want a secular argument as well. Here is a fantastic letter written with a non-religious argument against same-sex marriages.

http://www.slate.com/id/3642/entry/23841/

"Bash Back" vandalizes Olympia LDS Church

http://seattle.indymedia.org/en/2008/11/2 70047.shtml

 

 

Excerpt: Last night, under the veil of fog, we visited the Church of Latter Day Saints. We left their locks glued with anarchist messages scrawled in spray paint over their boring veneer.

We did this to show our solidarity with all who are resisting heterosexism everywhere, hopefully to spur them into action; and also because we are angry at the amount of money and propaganda that the Mormon church pumped into the homophobic Proposition 8 campaign. From their disgusting commercials to their despicable sermons to those gross lawn signs, we are sick of this parade of bigotry. The Church has to pay.

This is getting out of control...

Read the description below (caution it's graphic) before watching the video (which is also graphic, so turn your speakers down):



THIS VIDEO WAS NOT POSTED BY ANY MEMBER OF THE GROUP JHOP. HOWEVER, BELOW IS AN ACCOUNT OF ONE OF JHOPSF'S TEAM MEMBERS WHO WAS THERE.
November 14, 2008
I went to the Castro (the homosexual district of San Francisco) with JHOPSF (I have been with the Justice House of Prayer San Francisco since April 2008.) like we usually do on Friday nights.
Normally, we sit on 18th and Castro, and someone plays the guitar, and we all worship God.
Sometimes a person will yell at us, or maybe a few. Sometimes people will ignore us. Sometimes people will let us pray with them.

This time was not a normal night. It was the first time we'd been back in the Castro to do our normal outreach since California Proposition 8, which defined marriage as "one man with one woman" was passed. We played the guitar and sang together and worshiped the Lord. After just singing and worshiping God for a while, Roger decided that we should all hold hands in a circle and continue singing. So we did.

Someone (Actually a person who came up and hugged and kissed some of us who he knew from the past) convinced some people that we were there to protest against the no on 8 campaign.

Then some guy who was dressed up like one of the sisters (The sisters of perpetual indulgence is a group of men who dress up like nuns and call themselves the spiritual authority of the Castro.) took a curtain-type thing (Which I think they use to curse people) and wrapped it around us.

Then a crowd started gathering. We began to sing "Amazing Grace", and basically sang that song the whole night. (At some points we also sang "Nothing but the Blood of Jesus" and "Oh the Blood of Jesus".) At first, they just shouted at us, using crude, rude, and foul language and calling us names like "haters" and "bigots". Since it was a long night, I can't even begin to remember all of the things that were shouted and/or chanted at us. Then, they started throwing hot coffee, soda and alcohol on us and spitting (and maybe even peeing) on us. Then, a group of guys surrounded us with whistles, and blasted them inches away from our ears continually. Then, they started getting violent and started shoving us.

At one point a man tried to steal one of our Bibles. Chrisdene noticed, so she walked up to him and said "Hey, that's not yours, can you please give it back?". He responded by hitting her on the head with the Bible, shoving her to the ground, and kicking her. I called the cops, and when they got there, they pulled her out of the circle and asked her if she wanted to press charges. She said "No, tell him I forgive him." Afterwards, she didn't rejoin us in the circle, but she made friends with one of the people in the crowd, and really connected heart to heart. Roger got death threats. As the leader of our group, people looked him in the eyes and said "I am going to kill you.", and they were serious. A cop heard one of them, and confronted him. (This part is kinda graphic, so you should skip the paragraph if you don't want to be offended.)

It wasn't long before the violence turned to perversion. They were touching and grabbing me, and trying to shove things in my butt, and even trying to take off my pants - basically trying to molest me. I used one hand to hold my pants up, while I used the other arm to hold one of the girls. The guys huddled around all the girls, and protected them. Soon after, the cops came and stood between us and the mob. When it was getting more heated, the cops were like "You guys should leave." and Roger said "We want to stay." Someone tried to steal my backpack, but I tapped a cop on the shoulder, and said "Hey, that's my bag." and he got it from him and gave it to me. Others weren't so lucky. Probably half our team got their jackets stolen.

Eventually, as the crowd was getting more and more uncontrollable, the cops were afraid for our lives, so they escorted us to our van. (The cops were very nice to us from start to finish.) Our van was parked pretty far because it was hard to find parking that day. As the cops escorted us, the mob followed us, until the cops formed a line, and held off the people so we could drive away. We took the long way home, just in case anyone tried to follow us.

When we got home, we prayed and sang more, and then prayed over each-other. Please know my heart. All of what we do is for the Love of Jesus Christ, and the love for those in the Castro. The Bible says to love God, and then love people. We can only love because He loved us first. We can't hate the people because they are just broken and blinded by the spirit of this age. Our battle is not against flesh and blood, but against Principalities and Powers. It's not a political thing, we just love the people.

Feds investigate vandalism at Mormon sites

Federal officials have launched a preliminary inquiry into whether recent acts of vandalism against Mormon temples and meeting houses are hate crimes, a department spokesman said Friday.

"We are looking into whether these acts are intimidating people into not going into houses of worship," said Juan Becerra, of the Salt Lake City FBI. "The right to worship is a basic civil right."

The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints actively supported the passage of Proposition 8, the ballot initiative that banned same-sex marriage in California.

Since the Nov. 4 election, seven houses of worship in Utah have been vandalized, according to Becerra.
Thursday, envelopes filled with an unidentified white powdery substance were delivered to two Mormon temples, one in the Los Angeles area and one in Salt Lake City.

Preliminary results showed that the white substance tested negative for known hazardous biological agents and toxins. The final report should be available next week.

Becerra said federal agents are working with Salt Lake City church officials and local law enforcement.
Sacramento church officials have stepped up security at the Rancho Cordova temple.

Ten church buildings in the region have been vandalized since the election, said Lisa West, spokesperson for the church in the Sacramento area. "That's more than we usually get in an entire year."

http://www.sacbee.com/crime/story/1399018.html

Another protest at an LDS Church on Sunday

Demonstrators gathered in front of a Mormon temple in Newport Beach on Sunday to protest passage of Proposition 8. They were targeting the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, many members of which poured money into the campaign for passage of the proposition.

"We're not asking churches to sanctify marriages," said Ron Fichter of Laguna Beach. "To me it's just basic human rights."

Fichter, 64, said he came out as gay in 1965, was in the Navy for six years, and took part in one of the first gay marches in Washington, D.C., more than two decades ago.

"We've come a long ways, but we have a long ways to go," said Fichter.

Read more here: http://www.ocregister.com/articles/church-beach-passage-2230532-clayton-fichter

Gay rights activists picket in front of Mormon church

Gay rights activists demonstrated in front of the Vallejo Church of Latter-day Saints on Sunday morning.The group, numbering about a dozen, continued Saturday's rallies across the country, during which thousands gathered to protest the passage of Proposition 8.

Prop. 8 banned gay marriage -- legal since June -- through an amendment to the state constitution indicating that marriage is only between a man and a woman.

The group began their protest as members of the church began to enter shortly after 8 a.m. There was a brief confrontation with church officials, who asked the protesters to leave a church-owned sidewalk on Los Santos Court and move to a Tuolomne Street sidewalk.

"These protesters are welcome to do whatever they want in terms of a peaceful protest, but we will not tolerate them on our personal property," said Thomas S. Mortensen, the church's bishop.

read the rest here: http://www.timesheraldonline.com/news/ci_11003849

The Battle Continues...

Here's a great article from Meridian Magazine:

http://www.ldsmag.com/lineuponline/081117battle.html

Excerpt:

Even if Proposition 8 is overturned in the courts and same sex marriages receive legal secular recognition, the gospel of the Church will not change. Let me repeat, secular arguments do not trump spiritual imperatives.


The gospel of the Church of Jesus Christ Latter-day Saints , and of many other Christian and other faith based churches, do not and will not recognize marriage other than between a man and a woman. This will never change.


Does this mean there may be hard times ahead for for the Church, for individual Latter-day Saints, and for churches and members of other faiths? Without question. Everything we believe will be challenged and attacked.


Our defense, however, is impenetrable.


Our defense is Christ.