DNA King

As most of you know, our family has recently had our DNA analyzed.  It should come as no surprise to anybody that I am the DNA king!  :-) I was told in the hospital when I was on my death bed that the only reason I was alive was because of my superior genetics. My DNA analysis proves my genetic superiority.  :-)

The worst genetic trait I had was lack of empathy.  Which is arguably a favorable trait if you think about it.  It really does come in handy to not care about what people think.  I'm sure it's linked somehow to my excessive self-esteem levels.  I know I'm the king and no one is going to convince me otherwise.  :-)

The second worst genetic trait I had was lack of facial recognition.  I'm not good at remembering names and faces.  This is certainly true.  When I was on my mission I would always have to ask my companions who we were going to see on callbacks because I couldn't remember them.

But these two traits work well together because even though I don't remember names and faces, I don't care that I don't remember!  :-) Those two symbiotic traits have served me well during my lifetime.

So even though promethease marks these as bad traits -- I would argue that they are actually good traits to possess.

I could go on and on about all of my good traits but let me just mention a few that stick out in my mind.

1 -- I have a strong heart.  Lowest risk of atrial fibrillation, low risk of myocardial infarction (heart attack), lower risk of cardioembolic ischemic stroke.

2 -- I have the good warrior gene which means I handle stress better. And according to my Promethease report I am "able to perform better in a test where the optimal strategy changes."

3 -- I have increased memory performance.

4 -- I'm resistant to the norovirus.

5 -- I'm a fast caffeine metabolizer-- I am less stimulated by caffeine. Funny thing is I never touch the stuff!  :-)

6 --I am lactose tolerant.

7 -- I have the lowest odds of cannabis addiction.  :-) Guess I live in the right state for that -- ha ha.

8 -- I'm at much lower risk for type I diabetes .15x.

9 -- I'm a likely sprinter -- I always did run on my toes.  :-)

10 -- Promethease tells me I can eat all the brains I want -- I'm resistant to prion disease (Creutzfeldt Jakob aka mad cow disease).

Oh and a fun little tidbit: I am 2.5% Neanderthal and in the 24th percentile among European descendents.  :-)

Those are just some of the more interesting things from my DNA report.

Basically what it comes down to is I am the DNA King.  :-) But this shouldn't surprise anybody.  It certainly doesn't surprise me.  I have always known I am the King genetically and otherwise.  :-) And I'm humble to boot.  ;-)

That's my two cents.

For completeness sake and just for fun, here is the breakdown of my ancestral composition based on my DNA:

99.8%

European

Northern European

50.7%

British & Irish

9.1%

French & German

7.3%

Scandinavian

30.2%

Broadly Northern European

Southern European

0.5%

Iberian

1.2%

Broadly Southern European

0.1%

Ashkenazi

0.8%

Broadly European

0.2%

Sub-Saharan African

0.2%

West African

< 0.1%

Unassigned

100%

Tammy 

Why I Don't Watch the News

I haven't seen more than a handful of newscasts since the 2012 election.  Basically, I'm fed up with mainstream media and their liberal propaganda.

Well, last night I actually watched a local newscast.  And it just reminded me as to why I quit watching.

Take the sportscast for instance.  The first story was about the Mariners.  They interviewed the general manager who basically said winning is good and losing is bad and he's much happier when he wins.  Then they interviewed one of the players.  He basically said that they aren't playing well right now but they have potential.

I've always felt that sports interviews were ridiculous.  I mean really, how much can you say about a game?  It's always the same old thing -- very redundant.  "We need to play well/better and we will win.  If we don't play well/better we will lose."

The second part of the sportscast consisted of talking about who may or may not be attending a nonmandatory practice for the Seahawks.  Then they showed a video of some Seahawks players vacationing in Hawaii singing and playing ukuleles.

It was absolutely ridiculous.

Granted it was a sportscast -- but even sportscasts usually have highlights of actual sports being played.  And reporting on actual games or events.

How much actual news ended up on the cutting room floor to show a bunch of overpaid jocks living it up in Hawaii?

Is news supposed to be informative or entertaining?  I have always thought it was the former but if the latter, I've been much more entertained watching the grass grow.

That's my two cents.

Grace

Yesterday I watched a devotional given at BYU on July 12, 2011 by Brad Wilcox.  It was all about grace and I thought he did a wonderful job of explaining it.  I love the analogy he used of a mother paying for piano lessons.  Anyway, I decided I should blog about it and wanted to find a certain quote.  So I did a little research and found a condensed version of the talk in the Ensign.  So I decided to post the article here.  If you want to read it directly from the church website, click the link at the very bottom.

Anyway, the quote that I liked and wanted to post was this: "Heaven will not be heaven for those who have not chosen to be heavenly."-- Brad Wilcox

A little background on the quote -- he was talking about a troubled boy who was making terrible choices.  Brother Wilcox suggested to his parents that going to Especially for Youth might help him get back on track.  So they scraped together the money to send the boy to EFY.  He lasted less than a day.  He called his mother and said, "Get me out of here!" 

It was an environment in which he was not comfortable because of the choices he was making in his life at the time. Heaven was not heaven for him because he chose not to be heavenly.

I imagine that the judgment bar will be similar.  Those who have chosen to not live heavenly -- to paraphrase Brother Wilcox -- will not be comfortable in the presence of God and will say, as the teenage boy said, "Get me out of here!"

The grace of Christ -- his atonement -- is a free gift to all of us as we will all be resurrected. We will all return to His presence, albeit temporarily for some, to be judged according to our works.  To fully accept the gift of grace requires "practice" or effort on our part to transform ourselves that we may be comfortable in the presence of God, and live more abundantly with Him.

Much like being comfortable playing a piano concert at Carnegie Hall requires years and years of constant practice.  So does being comfortable in the presence of God require much practice of keeping His commandments and obeying His will.

Yes, practice is hard.  And at times it may not seem worth the effort.  But the rewards will come in time. His grace is sufficient.

That's my two cents.

Here's the article, enjoy!

His Grace Is Sufficient

By Brad Wilcox

From a devotional address given at Brigham Young University on July 12, 2011. For the full address, visit speeches.byu.edu.

How does God’s grace really work?

A young woman once came to me and asked if we could talk. I said, “Of course. How can I help you?”

She said, “I just don’t get grace.”

I responded, “What is it that you don’t understand?”

She said, “I know I need to do my best, and then Jesus does the rest, but I can’t even do my best.”

I said, “The truth is, Jesus paid our debt in full. He didn’t pay it all except for a few coins. He paid it all. It is finished.”

She said, “Right! Like I don’t have to do anything?”

“Oh, no,” I said, “you have plenty to do, but it is not to pay that debt. We will all be resurrected. We will all go back to God’s presence to be judged. What is left to be determined by our obedience is how comfortable we plan to be in God’s presence and what degree of glory we plan on receiving.”

Christ asks us to show faith in Him, repent, make and keep covenants, receive the Holy Ghost, and endure to the end. By complying, we are not paying the demands of justice—not even the smallest part. Instead, we are showing appreciation for what Jesus Christ did by using it to live a life like His. Justice requires immediate perfection or a punishment when we fall short. Because Jesus took that punishment, He can offer us the chance for ultimate perfection (see Matthew 5:48; 3 Nephi 12:48) and help us reach that goal. He can forgive what justice never could, and He can turn to us now with His own set of requirements (see3 Nephi 28:35).

Grace Transforms Us

Christ’s arrangement with us is similar to a mom providing music lessons for her child. Mom pays the piano teacher. Because Mom pays the debt in full, she can turn to her child and ask for something. What is it? Practice! Does the child’s practice pay the piano teacher? No. Does the child’s practice repay Mom for paying the piano teacher? No. Practicing is how the child shows appreciation for Mom’s incredible gift. It is how he takes advantage of the amazing opportunity Mom is giving him to live his life at a higher level. Mom’s joy is found not in getting repaid but in seeing her gift used—seeing her child improve. And so she continues to call for practice, practice, practice.

If the child sees Mom’s requirement of practice as being too overbearing (“Gosh, Mom, why do I need to practice? None of the other kids have to practice! I’m just going to be a professional baseball player anyway!”), perhaps it is because he doesn’t yet see with Mom’s eyes. He doesn’t see how much better his life could be if he would choose to live on a higher plane.

In the same way, because Jesus has paid justice, He can now turn to us and say: “Follow me” (Matthew 4:19); “Keep my commandments” (John 14:15). If we see His requirements as being way too much to ask, maybe it is because we do not yet see through Christ’s eyes. We have not yet comprehended what He is trying to make of us.

Elder Dallin H. Oaks of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles has said, “The repenting sinner must suffer for his sins, but this suffering has a different purpose than punishment or payment. Its purpose is change” (The Lord’s Way [1991], 223; emphasis in original). Let’s put that in terms of the child pianist: The child must practice the piano, but this practice has a different purpose than punishment or payment. Its purpose is change.

The miracle of the Atonement is not just that we can live after we die but that we can live more abundantly (see John 10:10). The miracle of the Atonement is not just that we can be cleansed and consoled but that we can be transformed (see Romans 8). Scriptures make it clear that no unclean thing can dwell with God (see Alma 40:26), but no unchanged thing will even want to.

The miracle of the Atonement is not just that we can go home but that—miraculously—we can feel at home there. If Heavenly Father and His Son did not require faith and repentance, then there would be no desire to change. Think of your friends and family members who have chosen to live without faith and without repentance. They don’t want to change. They are not trying to abandon sin and become comfortable with God. Rather, they are trying to abandon God and become comfortable with sin. If the Father and the Son did not require covenants and bestow the gift of the Holy Ghost, then there would be no way to change. We would be left forever with only willpower, with no access to His power. If Heavenly Father and His Son did not require endurance to the end, then there would be no internalization of those changes over time. They would forever be surface and cosmetic rather than sinking inside us and becoming part of us—part of who we are. Put simply, if Jesus didn’t require practice, then we would never become Saints.

Grace Helps Us

“But don’t you realize how hard it is to practice? I’m just not very good at the piano. I hit a lot of wrong notes. It takes me forever to get it right.” Now wait. Isn’t that all part of the learning process? When a young pianist hits a wrong note, we don’t say he is not worthy to keep practicing. We don’t expect him to be flawless. We just expect him to keep trying. Perfection may be his ultimate goal, but for now we can be content with progress in the right direction. Why is this perspective so easy to see in the context of learning piano but so hard to see in the context of learning heaven?

Too many are giving up on the Church because they are tired of constantly feeling like they are falling short. They have tried in the past, but they continually feel like they are just not good enough. They don’t understand grace.

There should never be just two options: perfection or giving up. When learning the piano, are the only options performing at Carnegie Hall or quitting? No. Growth and development take time. Learning takes time. When we understand grace, we understand that God is long-suffering, that change is a process, and that repentance is a pattern in our lives. When we understand grace, we understand that the blessings of Christ’s Atonement are continuous and His strength is perfect in our weakness (see 2 Corinthians 12:9). When we understand grace, we can, as it says in the Doctrine and Covenants, “continue in patience until [we] are perfected” (D&C 67:13).

Grace is not a booster engine that kicks in once our fuel supply is exhausted. Rather, it is our constant energy source. It is not the light at the end of the tunnel but the light that moves us through the tunnel. Grace is not achieved somewhere down the road. It is received right here and right now.

Grace Is Sufficient

The grace of Christ is sufficient (see Ether 12:27; D&C 17:8)—sufficient to cover our debt, sufficient to transform us, and sufficient to help us for as long as that transformation process takes. The Book of Mormon teaches us to rely solely on “the merits, and mercy, and grace of the Holy Messiah” (2 Nephi 2:8). As we do, we do not discover—as some Christians believe—that Christ requires nothing of us. Rather, we discover the reason He requires so much and find the strength to do all He asks (see Philippians 4:13). Grace is not the absence of God’s high expectations. Grace is the presence of God’s power (see Luke 1:37).

God’s grace is sufficient. Jesus’s grace is sufficient. It is enough. It is all we need. Don’t quit. Keep trying. Don’t look for escapes and excuses. Look for the Lord and His perfect strength. Don’t search for someone to blame. Search for someone to help you. Seek Christ, and, as you do, you will feel the enabling power and divine help we call His amazing grace.

Source:

Official Web site of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints

President Packer Quote

I read this in the Liahona yesterday and it stuck with me so I thought I would post it for all of you today. Seems apropos for this time of year.  It gives hope to all of us.  Excellent quote by President Packer.  Enjoy!  :-)

The Promise of the Atonement

“Restoring what you cannot restore, healing the wound you cannot heal, fixing that which you broke and cannot fix is the very purpose of the atonement of Christ. …

“I repeat, save for the exception of the very few who defect to perdition, there is no habit, no addiction, no rebellion, no transgression, no apostasy, no crime exempted from the promise of complete forgiveness. That is the promise of the atonement of Christ.”

President Boyd K. Packer, President of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles, “The Brilliant Morning of Forgiveness,” Ensign, Nov. 1995, 19–20.

Prayer

I was listening to a talk by Truman Madsen this morning.  I'm going to very loosely paraphrase what I remember because I think it's worth repeating.

He said something to the effect of there can be many things that you are not worthy to do -- prayer is not one of them. In fact, it is when we feel most unworthy and least like praying that we need to pray the most.

This is so true!  Many times I've heard people say they don't feel like praying or don't feel worthy to pray-- When we are at our lowest is precisely when we need to pray the most! There is no worthy requirement to prayer.  Anybody and everybody can pray anytime. In fact the scriptures say we should have a prayer in our hearts continually.  But even if you haven't prayed for weeks, months, or years -- or ever -- it's never too late to start now.

That's my two cents.

April 2015 General Conference Quotes

There were so many good quotes during General conference that I wish I could have written them down.  As I told Lisa that she informed me that I could find the quotes with pretty pictures online.  So I happened upon these as I was going through my e-mail -- there was a link on the LDS living.

So I chose a few that I like from those available and pasted them onto my blog.  My favorite quote from the entire conference was this first one I posted.



Another quote which I really liked but didn't see on the list was something to the effect of when physical wounds heal they always leave a scar but when spiritual wounds are healed through repentance-- There is no scar.  I can't remember who said it.  :-(










Elder Oaks had some other really great quotes but they don't have the transcripts posted yet.  :-(

If I had to give a summary I would say a lot of talks focused on Family -- I would say that was the number one topic.  Also, strengthening our testimonies and conversion -- trusting what we know to be true and not yielding to doubts. Emphasizing having to work daily on our own conversion to thwart the adversary's daily efforts to bring us down.  And of course, since it was Easter several talks focused on Our Savior.

I always look at general conference to understand what is most troubling in the Church at this time and what we all need to focus on.  Obviously, Satan's attacks on the family have increased or at least become more effective.  And his efforts to distract us from that which is most important appear to be working -- just look at how many people value social media over anything else.  And are, in fact, addicted.  As just one example.

It appears to me that the warning voice is sounding loud and clear that we need to step up our defenses against the evil one both personally and in our families.  To me this means getting our daily spiritual nourishment by way of Scripture study, prayer, uplifting music, LDS.org videos and talks, etc.

As Satan steps up his efforts, daily spiritual nourishment is becoming increasingly vital to our spiritual progression.  If we are not progressing by working at it every day, we are regressing.  There is no neutral ground.

That's my two cents.