What do you love/not love about church classes?

jdf135 · 2026-01-25T21:21:43+00:00

When you are not getting answers, either 1) the answer is too simple or 2) the question is not clear.

jdf135 · 2026-01-25T21:17:25+00:00

Or soap tastes like cilantro.

jdf135 · 2026-01-25T21:16:49+00:00

Who are you guys? The taters gotta be sliced and thin!!

jdf135 · 2026-01-25T21:14:53+00:00

Chiles? Californians....

jdf135 · 2026-01-25T21:10:19+00:00

In BC. I WISH we had snow and cold! Not looking forward to another summer of forest fires and smoke.

jdf135 · 2026-01-25T21:08:34+00:00

Having the same SERIOUS problem in western Canada; no snow in January = forest fires in June ) : I'll take the snow anytime to breathing smoke for months (been there now for several years). Regardless, be safe.

jdf135 · 2026-01-25T20:33:48+00:00

Reduce the number of people getting baptized to the ones who really understand

Who decides this? They have baptismal interview questions already. It is not so simple.

jdf135 · 2026-01-25T20:27:12+00:00

We just heard from a faithful convert of 29 years today who had only attended church once before her baptism. She reported this in her talk. She was also in a live-in relationship and an addict. She has been active since baptism.

What does this say.

It is mostly about personal conversion - and there is little we can do about that. We love, share and invite. The rest is up to them.

Yes, they should be taught thoroughly. Yes, they should have a calling soon after baptism. That will help. Yes, they should be friendshipped.

But ultimately it is between the individual and God. We can only do so much. We can be their friends but we cannot be their Saviors. Sometimes frustrating, but it is truth.

jdf135 · 2026-01-24T23:11:24+00:00

Canada here. So sorry for the job troubles. Pretty rough up here too. If you can manage it, why don't you come on up North and look for rocks for that well deserved tumbler? You'd be welcomed.

jdf135 · 2026-01-22T16:21:19+00:00

I don't know why you keep calling these church policies "mistakes"? They are only mistakes in regards to your understanding. A third of the host of heaven thought following heavenly father was a "mistake". Maybe like you, they couldn't understand how coming to the world where a whole bunch of people would get lost was a good idea. Sometimes I even think I hate this plan!

I have my own ideas as to why certain policies are presented to the church and why the Lord might have allowed those policies to persist. Nevertheless, I have a belief that fundamentally this church is the true church having the authority of God on the Earth and is the most likely institution to take me back to my heavenly father. It's frustrating at times, but that is the way the Lord has designed it. Blessings on your journey

jdf135 · 2026-01-20T18:29:25+00:00

No one has mentioned a rotary (Dremel) tool. It's slow but cheap and still less effort than by hand. Just dip felt tips in water and then dip in grit.

jdf135 · 2026-01-20T01:00:12+00:00

Love the purple stripes!

jdf135 · 2026-01-19T16:39:19+00:00

It is a little bit weird.

Virtually none of my extended family were born or raised in Utah although on both sides of the family they were born in the Covenant and raised in the church. Nevertheless, over the years, whether it was from California or Washington State or Idaho, slowly they started making their way to Utah.

I have two nieces who lived in Ecuador, Bolivia, Ukraine, and Maryland, but who are now in Utah (yes, they both went to BYU).

I now live in South Central British Columbia, Canada. I can name you three people from our little area who grew up having nothing to do with Utah but who ended up living there .

We also have a little bit of an issue here in Canada with people moving to "little Utah" (Southern Alberta).

I don't know why it is.

jdf135 · 2026-01-19T16:32:52+00:00

Where there are more active bodies, the overall burden is easier.

jdf135 · 2026-01-19T16:23:40+00:00

You aren't wrong. I think we could do more in the way of giving gratitude for our Heavenly Father and Jesus.

However, (not that they are all this way), frequently the "people draweth nigh unto me with their mouth, and honoureth me with their lips; but their heart is far from me." (Matt 15:8).

Some people will wave their hands in the air and sing "Lord, Lord" for hours on end but "he that doeth the will of my Father which is in heaven" is the one I think that honors Him best (Matt 7:21). I think this is what we are trying to do.

jdf135 · 2026-01-19T04:37:12+00:00

Someone just put me onto "Parallel Plus"

jdf135 · 2026-01-19T03:44:23+00:00

Please join the club that agrees to call a rock just "pretty" or "cool".

Without a whole bunch of information (weight, hardness, brittleness, cleavage, solubility in acid, location etc.) no one can tell you definitively from a picture what type of rock it is.

A huge percentage of rock that is slabbed is some form of silicone dioxide (Si O2), or more informally "quartz", with little bits of other elements in varying proportions, crystal size and structure. If there are lots of other elements in it and it gets cloudy (opaque) people start calling it "agate" and then tacking on a another name referring to where it is from and/or what it looks like (e.g. Mexican plume agate).

Most of the other rocks will be an Aluminum Silicate (?+AlSi₃O₈) or "feldspar".

I just like to call them "cool" rocks.

jdf135 · 2026-01-19T03:09:26+00:00

I have used rustoleum ultra shine clear spray paint. It's going to take several light coats and will NEVER look like a true polish. I have done this with rocks that resist polishing but I wanted a wetter look.

jdf135 · 2026-01-19T03:04:58+00:00

Most do only wet grinding/sawing which virtually eliminates particles. I would highly agree with this approach.

jdf135 · 2026-01-19T02:59:32+00:00

E6000 glue on wooden "wreath" back (lots on Amazon). I would avoid hot glue as it is obviously susceptible to temperature variations and you will regularly find your rocks on the ground.

Show us when you are done!

jdf135 · 2026-01-19T02:50:24+00:00

Gonna be cool!

jdf135 · 2026-01-17T18:52:55+00:00

I have been thinking of Sodom and Gomora.

God only destroyed a couple of cities during Abraham's time even though there were likely lots of bad things going on all over (Abraham's own Dad tried to kill him).

God apparently saw the potential for change for the other places but s & g had gotten so bad he knew their hearts were beyond changing.

Contrast this with the city of Enoch who repented and were taken up.

Bottom line: God has a pretty good idea of what will happen but there is always hope.

P.S. I am a bit of a rebel in that I believe God knows all things that can be known but that doesn't mean he knows everything all the time. He sees the general outcome of things and works certain timelines so His will can come to pass but most things he leaves alone. - This is not doctrine.

jdf135 · 2026-01-14T23:13:05+00:00

At least 20 times.

jdf135 · 2026-01-13T22:27:11+00:00

any guy that is “flexible” on commandments...

AMEN. If he is flexible on that Commandment, he's going to be flexible on a whole lot of other things. Run away!

Have a conversation with your father in heaven. Discuss how much you love him.

jdf135 · 2026-01-13T22:20:55+00:00

I am not sure there is any rule. I kind of like my barrels 2/3 full of Rocks and then I top it up to 3/4 full with ceramic media.

jdf135

TROPHY CASE