Joyful Wells | Sharing Cups of Water

In 1820, Joseph Smith experienced his first vision of Jesus Christ and God the Father.  Seven  years later, after much refinement through persecution, Joseph was prepared to receive the golden plates known today as the Book of Mormon. He details the account of obtaining the plates below: […] Convenient to the village of Manchester, Ontario County, New York, stands a hill of considerable size and the most elevated of any in the neighborhood. On the west side of this hill, not far from the top, under a stone of considerable size, lay the plates deposited in a stone box. This stone was thick and rounding in the middle on the upper side, and thinner towards the edges, so that the middle part of it was visible above the ground, but the edge all round was covered with earth. Having removed the earth, and obtained a lever which I got fixed under the edge of the stone, and with a little exertion raised it up, I looked in. And there indeed did I behold the plates, the Urim and Thummim,...

If you Google search the Urim and Thummim, you will find many articles and videos about them. Much of what you will find is just a repeat of what others have already said. Other than providing the necessary introductory context, I intend not to rehash what's already been shared but to provide new insights. The first mention of a Urim and Thummim is in the Book of Mormon when the brother of Jared receives them from the Lord around the time of the Tower of Babel. In that story, they are called "stones" by the Lord and "interpreters" by Moroni. We are told that one of their functions was to translate the brother of Jared's record in some future time ( Ether 1:15 ). Much later in the Book of Mormon,  King Benjamin possessed them, and we're informed they are also used to uncover hidden mysteries ( Mosiah 5:13 ). He passed them down from generation to generation until they were sealed up by the last prophet, Moroni. In the Book of Abraham, we discover he also ...

God emanates his spiritual light everywhere all the time: And the light which now shines, which gives you light, is through him who enlightens your eyes, which is the same light that quickens your understandings, which light proceeds forth from the presence of God to fill the immensity of space: the light which is in all things , which gives life to all things, which is the law by which all things are governed, even the power of God who sits upon his throne, who is in the bosom of eternity, who is in the midst of all things ( Teachings and Commandments 86:1 ) We can experience abrupt insights while scooping shovels of dirt into a wheel barrel or speaking with a stranger, friend, or family member. We can also recognize God's light in nature, indoors, driving in a car, and counseling with others. There is no limit to where, how, or when his voice can be perceived.  But the immensity of God's light does not mean each delivery method is equally received. For example, receiving subl...

David utilized the fire of the Lord's "eyes" to further open his own. Like every righteous soul before him, he desired to become 'spotless' and 'blameless' before God because coming into his presence with unresolved sin will be our hell  ( Alma 9:4 ). With this understanding,  these were his kind of prayers: Search me ,  O God, and know my heart.  Try me   and know my thoughts. And  see if there is any wicked way in me ,  and  lead me  in the way everlasting. ( Psalm 139:4 ) The Lord's eyes reveal precisely what we need to address to become pure, so in a very real way, we should  want  the Lord to inspect us. There are many other examples of this understanding in scripture. For instance, a  rich young man also desired the Lord to try his heart: And behold, one came and said, Good Master, what good thing shall I do, that I may have eternal life?  And he said unto him, Why do you call me good? There is none good but one...

To be saved, we must be like the Lord ( Lectures on Faith 7:9 ).  "Eyes like a flame of fire" are characteristic of a saved being. For those of us not yet like him, the fire of the Lord's eyes proves us until we are. If we allow it, his all-piercing eye can guide us further toward the salvation we seek ( Psalm 32:3 ).    The reason we need his light is because our eyes are closed. We journey through life lacking greater knowledge, intelligence, and the ability to see things as they are. Other words used in scripture to highlight our condition are blindness ( Isaiah 15:10 ), darkness ( Genesis 4:15 ), lack of vision ( Proverbs 4:115 ), stumbling ( Isaiah 21:2 ), and being asleep ( 2 Nephi 1:3 ). Or, to put it concisely:   Verily, verily I say unto you, darkness covers the earth, and gross darkness the minds of the people, and all flesh has become corrupt before my face ( Teachings and Commandments 124:6 ).   Of the terms describing our condition ab...

This first post is dedicated to my friend and brother.  Here are two descriptions  of the Lord's eyes: His body also  was  like the beryl, and his face as the appearance of lightning, and  his eyes as lamps of fire , and his arms and his feet like in colour to polished brass, and the voice of his words like the voice of a multitude. ( Daniel 10:2 ) And unto the angel of the church in Thyatira write; These things saith the Son of God, who hath his eyes like unto a flame of fire , and his feet  are  like fine brass. ( Revelation 1:13 ) How are his eyes like "fire"?  First, eyes are a representation of knowledge, intelligence, and the ability to see things as they really are ( Jacob 3:4 ,  Teachings and Commandments 74:4 ). Christ, the most intelligent of us all, sees all things clearly. There is no speck in his eye that he would misjudge or misvalue any situation  ( Matthew 3:41 ) . We can hide nothing good nor bad from his sight ( Psalm...