Exploring the Scriptures: Anna

I always have wanted to know more about the Scriptures.  I find that reading them is never enough.  So I have decided that I am going to pick a topic out of the Bible Dictionary and explore a topic.  I have noticed that there are people mentioned in the Bible, but at times they are only mentioned once.  One such person that I found was Anna. 

"(New Testament form of Hannah.) A prophetess of the tribe of Asher who, after a short married life of seven years, had been, at the time of our Lord’s birth, a widow for 84 years. She was one of those who greeted the infant Jesus at His presentation in the temple"

 Here's what the scripture in Luke 2:36-38

"36 And there was one Anna, a prophetess, the daughter of Phanuel, of the tribe of Aser: she was of a great age, and had lived with an husband seven years from her virginity;
37 And she was a widow of about fourscore and four years, which departed not from the temple, but servedGod with fastings and prayers night and day.
38 And she coming in that instant gave thanks likewise unto the Lord, and spake of him to all them that looked for redemption in Jerusalem."

Who is Anna and why is she only mentioned once.  We know from reading the verses that she was

• A Prophetess
• Daughter of Phanuel
• From the tribe of Asher
• Was 84 years old
• A widow
• MAY have lived in the temple

But why was she mentioned?  Was she important?  Could there have been a possibility that she was more important than what is lead to believe in those 3 verses. Why isn't she mentioned else where, as in the book of Mathew, Mark.
So I took LDS.org and the internet to find more clues to who Anna was. LDS.org explains why she was mentioned in a way that makes is understandable:

The Spirit’s witness to the divinity of Jesus was not to be confined to a man. There was at that time in the temple a godly woman of great age, Anna, a prophetess who devoted herself exclusively to temple service; and she, being inspired of God, recognized her Redeemer, and testified of Him to all about her. Both Joseph and Mary marveled at the things that were spoken of the Child; seemingly they were not yet able to comprehend the majesty of Him who had come to them through so miraculous a conception and so marvelous a birth.

I love how it states, "The Spirit's witness to the divinity of Jesus was NOT to be confined to a man."  Any one can testify of Jesus.  Anna was a prophetess because she prophesied about Jesus Christ, that he is the Redeemer.
Another website I found theopolisinstitute.comExplains about Anna further. 

"With Simeon and Anna, we have the testimony of two reliable witnesses. It is important to remember where they are. They are in the temple. Even before Jesus can speak or show Himself the Christ, even before His baptism, God announces to His faithful people the birth of His Son. God the proud Father allows faithful Israel to see the Son of God and welcome Him into His Temple. What a contrast to unfaithful Israel. Herod already wants Jesus dead, and when Jesus grows up, temple leaders will scream for His crucifixion. Simeon and Anna shows us how the true people of God receives Jesus: Jesus is Holy to the Lord. He is the Christ. Praise God for preserving a true people for himself. Unless God adopted us into His family, we’d be blind to His Son and oppose His work in the world.

In Anna’s days, there were plenty of reasons for her to avoid going to the Temple. Her fasting and prayers speak to a dilemma in her day. Anna’s fasting recognizes the need for a redeemer. She’s removing herself from the desecration, the leaven of self-righteousness all too common, the distraction of people who want the Temple to serve their purposes rather than God’s, a distraction even today found among the halls of God’s house.This behaviour, fasting and praying, is Anna’s elegy of her situation in order to provoke God to act on her behalf. She fasts from food, becomes physically hungry, and this physical hunger reminds her of her hunger for God to whom she prays for relief. Anna’s plea is for God to bring about the redemption of Jerusalem. We join her ranks when we pray “Lord, rescue your people from our enemies encircling us all around.”

That site has so much more about Anna, which I will leave you to explore on your own.
But now that I have looked up about Anna I have noticed that her role in the Bible was very important even though there is little about her.  She is important because she is

• a second witness
• a righteous person
• a prophet to testify of Jesus Christ

My thoughts on General Conference 2017 talk

Those of you who are familuar with the Latter-day Saints know that we hold two General Conference meetings a year.  One in April and the other in October.  Brief explanation for those who don't know, its when our Prophet and other leaders come together and address the church followers.  They give us inspired talks.

One talk that I really felt a strong spirit in was entitled

Don't look around, Look up by Elder Yoon Hawn Choi of the Seventy

He made some really good points that stuck out to me.  I'm going to quote some of his talk and add my input/feelings that I got from his talk.

"One day, a few months after my baptism, I heard some members criticizing each other in church. I was very disappointed. I went home and told my father that maybe I should not go to church anymore. It was difficult to see members criticize others like that. After listening, my father taught me that the gospel had been restored and it is perfect but members are not yet, neither himself nor me. He firmly said, “Do not lose your faith because of the people around you, but build a strong relationship with Jesus Christ. Don’t look around, look up!”"

There have actually been times in my life when I have allowed the way others influence my attendence of church.  I'm not saying that I always attend church.  I am far from doing that.  But there have been times where I have not liked the way a person has acted towards another and even myself to allow that to interfere with my worship.  The only person this is hurting is ME. Why do we allow this to happen.  It takes away from us, not the other person who we have felt has offended us.  NO ONE is perfect, church is not on this earth for the perfect person.  It is here for the sinners who need to come closer to our Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ.  We need to set aside the natural man and choose to serve, and learn from our Heavenly Father. I love the quote "Don't loose your faith because of the people around you."  We must not let others choose how we worship.

"Dear brothers and sisters, it is not easy for us to recognize the love of Heavenly Father when we look around with our temporal eyes, because we see inconvenience, loss, burdens, or loneliness first. On the other hand, we can see the blessings beyond when we look up. The Lord has revealed, “When we obtain any blessing from God, it is by obedience to that law upon which it is predicated.”

There are probably many blessings that i have missed because I am one who tends to look around with my temporal eyes.  I wish I didn't.  I wish that I can by some miricle wake up and find myself looking up towards Heaven and my Heavenly Father and never looking around.  I wish I can be one of those who do a miraculas turn around and strive every day to serve Heavenly Father. Why do I find it hard to wake up, pray to my Heavenly Father and thnk Him for another day at life?  Why do I find it hard to take 5 minutes out of my life to read His word?  5 minutes, that's 1 verse. Can it truely be that hard?  I say yes it can.  But then I don't have the reason as to why it is that hard.  It could be that my temporal eyes are looking around, looking at the loss, the burdens and loneliness of life.  But how, How do you break away from this???

"Elder M. Russell Ballard said: “If you choose to become inactive or to leave the restored Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, where will you go? What will you do? The decision to ‘walk no more’ with Church members and the Lord’s chosen leaders will have a long-term impact that cannot always be seen right now.”6 President Thomas S. Monson encouraged us, “May we ever choose the harder right instead of the easier wrong.”7It is never too late to look up to Jesus Christ. His arms are always open to you. There are generations before us and after us depending on us to follow Christ so that we can be an eternal family of God."

This sums it up. When we turn from our Heavenly Father and walk the path of sin it is alot harder to turn from that path and walk the right way.  It's hard to give up adictions like smoking, drinking, not reading your scriptures or even praying.  And when you get to that low point in life, you feel as if you are alone.  But you are never alone.  Heavenly Father is always with you.  You just have to turn towards Him and ask for forgiveness.  Our brother Jesus Christ is always waiting with open arms to welcome you back.  He is always willing to forgive, if we just repent and ask for his forgiveness.  Heavenly Father is a loving father, he doesn't want any of us to go astray.  He wants all of us to return unto him when our mortal life is over.

"It’s not always easy to look up when your parents are opposed to the gospel, when you are a member of a small Church unit, when your spouse is not a member, when you are still single although you did your best to marry, when a child has strayed, when you find yourself a single parent, when you are physically or emotionally challenged, when you are a victim in a disaster, and so on. Hold on to your faith in those hard times. Look up to Christ for strength, balance, and healing. Through the power of the Atonement of Jesus Christ, “all things shall work together for [your] good.”8

It isn't that easy when your spouse isn't part of the church.  That's one excuse I use.  I always think, well if Chango was a memeber of the church then going to church would be easier, reading the scriptures would be easier.  I always think that having someone else to share the experience with makes it easier.  But I must do it myself.  No one else can do it for me.  I must do it.

An interesting thing came into my mind today as I sat in the employee lounge at my work, which just happens to be in a basement, it was nice being down there alone with just my lunch and thoughts. And boy did my thoughts run away.

I had met with the missionaries earlier in the day to discuss our weekly Bible study chapters. Knowing I might be on a side which I do not really care to work on, I asked the Elders to leave me with a uplifting word from the Book of Mormon to get me through the night. Alma 11:40 came to the elders mind

"And he shall come into the world to redeem his people; and he shall take upon him the transgressions of those who believe on his name; and these are they that shall have eternal life, and salvation cometh to none else."

As I pondered these words again I thought of what one of the elders said through believing in Jesus Christ and good works we all will be saved.

Good works, huh. That led me to think of a question that was asked this Sunday on Sunday school:
                                                   

                                                    "What does being the Lord’s covenant

                                                    people have to do with how we dress,
                                                    act, and keep the commandments of
                                                    God?"

I have the first part down which is believing in Jesus Christ that he is my savior and my redeemer. That he was sent by Heavenly Father to die on the cross for my sins. He is my big brother, my middle man, my shoulder to lean on. I may not always remember in my trials and tribulations to always call upon Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ to get me through my troubles. I don't always feast upon his words everyday. It's hard for me to pray, or actually it is hard for me to remember to pray. At times I kind of envy people that remember to do it, it's nice to be in a fast food restaurant and see a couple bow their heads and say a prayer before they eat their meal. Sometimes, and I try so hard not to do it, I do take the Lord's name in vain. It's kind of hard when you are used to cussing, but I am trying to do better and trying to choose different words instead. I am trying to go to church every week, even if it is only for one hour out of the three hours we go. I've actually had friends who ask how I can go to church for three hours, but honestly since I have grown up in the church it doesn't bother me. I love it, because the first hour is our Sacrament hour or mass to some people. Our second hour is Sunday School, and then the third hour is like Sunday School only women go to one class and the men go to another class. And honestly, when I am at church going through the different classes/hours it doesn't feel like I have been at church for three hours at all. Sometimes I am sad at the end of church because I had such a wonderful, spiritual experience I don't want it to end.
So how does good works go hand in hand with believing in Jesus Christ?  It's hard for me to explain.  But we can ask ourselves, How is it that if you believe in Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ and still do wicked things?  I know that in my heart that can't really be, for you can not have two masters.

                                                         24 ¶No man can serve two masters:
                                                              for either he will hate the one,
                                                              and love the other; or else he will
                                                              hold to the one, and despise the other. 
                                                             Ye cannot serve God and mammon.

If you truely follow Jesus Christ in your heart, then you will strive to not only keep the commandments of our Heavenly Father, but also follow the teachings of Jesus.  When he was here on earth, he helped the weak, the sick, the sinful, and poor.  He told us to be converted as little children.  If you truely have faith in Jesus Christ, you will strive to folloow the commandments, which in turn betters yourself.  Not only that but you will also learn to forgive others and do unto them as you would have them do unto you.  You just can't hold a grudge against someone and another for total forgiveness if you haven't forgiven in your heart. 
                                                      

                                                       13 Let us hear the conclusion of the whole matter:
                                                       Fear God, and keep his commandments: for this
                                                       is the whole duty of man.
                                                       14 For God shall bring every work into judgment,
                                                       with every secret thing, whether it be good,
                                                       or whether it be evil.

Book of Mormon: A reading challenge for me.



This is not an official Book of Mormon from the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints but this edition of the Book of Mormon is published by special arrangement with The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, Salt Lake City, Utah.



Example of how I am marking my new Book of Mormon



I have chosen to read the Book of Mormon again, from coverth to coverth.  Usually I start something like this and about half way through the book I for some reason stop reading.  Which is horrible because I really enjoy reading the Book of Mormon and I have fun trying to find different things to help me understand the words of the Lord.  For example every time I see the word baptism I take a green pen and write over the letters with the pen.  I do it for repentance (blue), faith (black), Holy Ghost(red), keep the commandments (purple), Lord or Heavenly Father or any other names for God (highlighted in Yellow) and Jesus Christ or any other names for him (highlighted in Orange).  I also have other colors that without my color chart in front of me I can not pull off the top of my head.  Its amazing to look back on what you have read and see the different colors and their meaning.   Did you know that on the very first page of the Book of Mormon, Where 1Nephi starts, God is mentioned 2 times with in 3 verses or if you flip to page 41 God (Lord, Spirit of God) is mentioned 20 times? In one of the chapters of Ether faith is mentioned around 32 times? (man I wish I had my book that has it highlighted in front of me so I can give the correct amount). The bad part is that no matter how many times I read the Book of Mormon and highlight different verses I can never remember verses off the top of my head.  Some people can say (I'm just making it up and looking up the verse, mind you I have a copy of the Book of Mormon next to me and the internet where I can look up these verses) Alma 32:15 says: Yea, he that truly humbleth himself, and repenteth of his sins, and endureth to the end, the same shall be blessed—yea, much more blessed than they who are compelled to be humble because of their exceeding poverty. I can't even begin to quote scriptures or even tell you where the verse was that I read it.  Like yesterday I read prophecy about the Book of Mormon and one verse said a Bible a Bible we already have a Bible, Oh man I better look that up because I don't know if I am quoting it right or even where it is.  That is how bad I am at memorizing the scriptures.....pause for looking up....Okay so it is in 2Nephi 29:3 and the actual verse is "....A Bible! A Bible! We have got a Bible, and there cannot be any more Bible." So I was close, but I still didn't know where it was, the only way I found it was because I had highlighted it.  I think I have gotten off coarse on what I was talking about.  

So anyways, I want to read it from cover to cover but I wanted to do some type of challenge.  I have been presented a few challenges from the missionaries in the past and I have forgotten what they were so I googled  and I found a blog that had a schedule that was for a 30 day reading cycle.  It comes off of a talk by  President Gordon B. Hinckley Click here if you want to read what it says:  http://www.maccabe.org/images/7/7d/90DayBOM.pdf 


Inside cover of my Book of Mormon

 So I copied the schedule and taped it to the front of my Book of Mormon,  which everyone says it is a good idea to start a new book when you decide to start over.  If only they knew how many times I start and stop reading.  I think I would have a million books.
I think I am doing alright in keeping to the schedule. I am a day or two behind, but I am striving to read it!!

I just want to say that I know this book, The Book of Mormon is another testament of Jesus Christ.  And if you read it, with real intent, you will know it does testify of Christ.  For only things that testify of the goodness of the Lord are of the Lord, because the devil can not testify of the goodness of the Lord but only the Holy Ghost can testify of God and Jesus.  I hope you will seek the happiness this book brings and feel how closer to Heavenly Father you will become by just reading this book then asking Heavenly Father if this IS his words.

 

Update:

I suck at keeping up with my goals.  As of today I am 10 days behind schedule.  But I am proud to say that I am reading each day.