Is it so, or is it Not? Who Says it and Why?

Truth. It is such a simple and direct concept, yet it can also be troublesome.

I remember a funny saying I heard years ago that  "All generalizations (including this one) are false."

So much hinges on the knowledge of truth. It determines trust, confidence, peace and freedom, and yet it is the perception of truth that usually drives us.

One main point that came to mind as I considered this topic is that the enemy of Truth is Satan, the father of lies. We are sure that he is the author of most of the lies we encounter. My thoughts, however, led me to the idea that his greatest power is not the direct lie, but what leads us to doubt truth once we have embraced it. Satan's purpose is not only to feed us lies, but is to sow contention, distrust and hate.

Good examples of this can be found the scriptures. In my recent personal reading, I thought of all this as I read in First Nephi, chapter 16:

"38 Now, he (Nephi) says that the Lord has talked with him, and also that angels have ministered unto him.  But behold, we know that he lies unto us; and he tells us these things, and he worketh many things by his cunning arts, that he may deceive our eyes, thinking, perhaps, that he may lead us away into some strange wilderness; and after he has led us away, he has thought to make himself a king and a ruler over us, that he may do with us according to his will and pleasure."

This became the theme of Lamanite complaining against the Nephites for generations: "He (or they) lied to us."

Another word for lie and deception in the Book of Mormon is "cunning."  In Alma the story of Lamoni as he met his father shows this. His father sums up that same attitude and excuse:  "...  thou art going to deliver these Nephites, who are sons of a liar.  Behold, he robbed our fathers; and now his children are also come amongst us that they may, by their cunning and their lyings, deceive us, that they again may rob us of our property. ..."  Alma 20:13

I usually laugh at this one because basically he is saying that the Nephites are just smarter than they are and are using that to exert power over them — "duh,   we are just stupid! "

It appears that the easy way to prove a point and to vilify someone else and accuse them of conspiring to trick us with their secret "cunning.." This seems to apply to our desire to be rid of some unwanted influence, be it an individual or a group of political or religious leaders, or even people who stand firm against some thing we desire. Our fall-back response is to simply say that they lie to us, whether we have evidence of that or not. We assign, not only blame, but also intent or deliberate deception, onto the actions or policies of others. Calling someone a liar is an act of judgement of someone else.  In making such a judgement and attempting to convince others of that judgement goes against what the Savior said about not judging others.

I see that some distrust authority saying that such leaders are using their position and knowledge to just keep us blindly in their power and that we should rebel against it. I see that in politics and also in those who disaffect themselves from the faith.

My concern is about what such an attitude leads people to do. Usually it tears them away from the good that they once had, based entirely on a deception given them concerning their previous conviction.

Of course, it is important to be sure we are not being purposely deceived or misled by those in authority. It is not wrong to have questions. The trouble comes when we start to believe reports or narratives which present what is purported as fact when really it is yet another agenda based on either outright falsehood, or more often, only partial truth, mixed with some deliberate tiny lies. Many times, the distrust sown by these questioners is based on some new or obscure historical "fact." Often, such reports of history have a fair amount of truth, but are interpreted such that they cause others to seriously question everything they previously held and committed themselves to as truth.

Whom do you trust?

Basically, in my experience and understanding, there is really only one source of this Truth. The struggle comes when we turn to God for the truth and feel silence. Often that comes because of some aspect of ourselves that is not in harmony with the nature of our Heavenly Father. None of us are sinless, but if we are not trying to overcome our frailties, not trying to work to live closer to the Spirit, we cannot expect to easily receive answers and truth.  We are expected to do serious work in preparing ourselves and putting our minds in a place where God can speak to us, or even understand how to hear His counsel. The wonderful thing is when those moments of  unexpected clarity come as we just try to make that effort. He doesn't wait until we are perfect or nearly so. He really wants us to know and be sure.

I really believe that the main trouble with the current trend of mistrust and fear comes with the lack of patience necessary to trust that the Lord will direct His people in His own timeline. In that patience, we must not let that mistrust and question of truth lead to meanness and hate. Sometimes the best thing we can do is to hope that others are not as bad as they seem, instead of vilifying them as absolute enemies to be fought at all costs. When we have deep fear, we tend to put up barriers that never lead to any kind of reconciliation. What we really need now, both in the political and the religious arena is patience, compassion and hope, trusting that good will win out. For our part, kindness and respect is needed.

Dealing with Disorder

 I wrote this article a few weeks ago and pondered on whether I ought to post it,           or not.

As I summarized my difficulties dealing with disorder and frustrations of life, I pondered the concept of adversity being trivialized by these minor irritations when so many have to deal with serious issues. What right have I to complain?

Then, last Sunday in our Gospel Doctrine class, the teacher was summarizing the deep anxiety experienced by the Prophet Joseph Smith and the Saints of Missouri and why must they suffer so. I even mentioned my own great-grandfather, who as a child of about 8 years endured the expulsion from Missouri to Illinois where his own father perished in the process. Why the adversity? To gain experience and be better for it? Yes, of course, but in the discussion I brought up the issue of dealing with our own minor frustrations, becoming angry and distracted from what is important. She said that those issues are also real.

So, with all that, here it goes....

- . - . -- . - . - . - . - . - .         .                        .

Dealing with Disorder

I have joked in my well-known and odd humor that "entropy is not what it used to be," (refering to randomness). At times, I have also commented on how life seems to sometimes be a constant war between friction and gravity (meaning that things stick or drop with little predictability). What my esoteric attempts to be funny really hide is my innate dislike of disorder and randomness which results in my reaction to the unexpected. It is an obsession and a compulsion. I want entropy to stop, and get upset at my inability to avoid the inevitable stubbed toe of life.

No one is to blame, usually, but that makes it even worse. When it is unfair, it helps to convict someone else for their meanness. I am not mad at anyone, so that is not sin. After all, if I get angry at myself, who does it hurt?

Deep down, within me, it becomes a spirit of contention.

The Lord makes it clear that those feelings are not from Him:

"For verily, verily I say unto you, he that hath the spirit of contention is not of me, but is of the devil, who is the father of contention, and he stirreth up the hearts of men to contend with anger, one with another." - 3 Nephi 11:29 

Basically, I am stirring up my own heart as I choose to react to my ordinary missteps and the random inconveniences around me.

How can I change? I have consciously, but more often unconsciously, been dealing with this dilemma my whole life.

It is probably this lifetime struggle that prompted me to embrace a scripture, becoming my favorite. It was introduced to me by my semimary teacher many years ago, Keith Perkins, at Granite High school as a senior. It reads:

"Trust in the Lord with all thine heart and lean on unto thine own understanding. In all thy ways acknowledge Him and He shall direct thy paths. Be not wise in thine own eyes. Depart from evil."  Proverbs 3:5-7

It is not that I DO trust in the Lord that this is my favorite scripture. Quite the contrary, it is because I generally DO NOT trust Him and trip through life condemning random events and try to analyze life's many crooked paths. I don't "acknowledge Him" and don't let Him "direct my paths."

At times, I think about the promise of that day when Satan will be bound and we no longer are tossed about and tempted, and suffer from the bad stuff others inflict upon us. Recently, though, I asked myself whether this random unpredictability of life will be part of what goes away at His coming. That shook me up. We know that we will live in the Millenium with peace and that contention which comes from the devil will be done away, but will we nonetheless live our lives, interacting with others and with "nature," and not suffer from ailments, death and temptation and Satan's incessant twists, and does that mean that the accidental dropping of the fork to the floor, or the tripping on the rug will also never happen again? (Nor will we be made to suffer from extreme run-on sentences?) Will the winds of life not blow that paper off my desk again for one thousand years?

Of course these examples are intentionally silly. Still, it is those things that push me into my angry reactions at times.

Maybe the change that comes — even now, not necessarily waiting for the Savior to come again — must be made within me. What can be done to change the way I react to random, distressing, unplanned, unexpected, annoying, infuriating, unfair, entropic, ...  life?

The Lord has promised to "wipe away tears from all faces" (Isaiah 25:8, see also Rev. 7:17 and Rev. 21:4). I am now thinking that perhaps that wiping away of tears involves a change within me that brings those tears to my eyes in the first place. Of course, I do not speak of those real effects of life that bring tears. I mean my own perceptions of life's unfairness that bring disproportional reactions in me. Sometimes the scriptures refer to this as "kicking against the pricks" (e.g. Acts 9:5).

Breathe in, breathe out, calm down. These are such nice words but often are the worst things I want to hear at the moment of distress. What temperance can I learn?

Actually, in a recent conference address I was impressed by the topic of temperance given by Elder Ulisses Soares a few weeks ago. He said, "... cultivating temperance is a meaningful way to protect our souls against the subtle yet constant spiritual erosion caused by worldly influences that can weaken our foundation in Jesus Christ." - Elder Ulisses Soares, October 2025 General Conference

Worldly influences — that fairly well describes what I have summarized here. Considering the world, I also remember reading how the three Nephites were not affected by the world: " the powers of the earth could not hold them," and I wondered what that might have been (see 3 Nephi 29:39). Is that what the Millennium will be like for us? Will the winds not blow the paper off the desk? Will that tissue always land in the rubbish bin when tossed?

I hope to have the effects of the world not hold me, but now perhaps I need to learn how to not let these effects affect me. For that, I need to trust in the Lord and let Him change me so that such insignificant things do not turn my soul away from His redeeming love by my becoming angry.

I am sure that is the answer. It is the Lord who can tame that animal within me that reacts to life's stings, whether they are Satan's attempts to foil me or just some random wind of fate. Either way, my response is key. I pray that the Lord can make me better than I am and trust in Him to lift me above the powers of the earth. I cannot do this by myself. With the grace of my Savior Jesus Christ all things are possible.

 - jfb