Lost_one

I was inactive for quite a few years and only just returned on April 10th this year. I am also a single adult and I really enjoy it. The Bishop might ask you for a quick word, if he doesn't, it will be a good idea to see if he can fit you in for a chat. He will see what your needs are and do what he can to help you. Something I only just learnt a few weeks back. It turns out that the other members in the ward are human and have faults and failings, just like me. It can be very easy to think that you as an unworthy person are going to walk into a building filled with perfect beings and feel completely out of place, But they are just like you. They are on the same path. They have probably made the same mistakes you have or worse. Go to church, make some friends, be part of Heavenly Fathers wonderful family, read your scriptures, pray and have fun. Oh! And don't forget to invite the spirit into your heart. The Holy Spirit is a bit like a Vampire. He won't come in unless you invite him in, then he becomes the best house guest you could ever imagine. Unlike that pesky Vampire who steals all your cookies.

I also have to believe this account and yes I also have no doubt about what they saw concerning the cave, But that doesn't stop it being a possible vision. Just that they were perhaps given a vision of a real place. They might even have visited it in the spirit.

I bet he did. If it was me in those situations, my eyes would be glued to them. I wouldn't wan't to miss a single little detail.

Well I'm glad I'm not the only one who thinks this way. It would make sense for it to have been a vision, rather than an actual cave.Even if it was just a vision. It must have been an amazing one. Even the thought of it catches the breath. To have actually seen it, must have been awesome. For a thread that started with some unanswerable questions, I sure have learnt alot. :)

I have never read that account before, But it makes alot of sense. I don't mean to sound silly, But who is to say that the cave that the Prophet and Cowdrey entered was even physically at the location they entered it. It could have just appeared to be there to their eyes. Has anyone ever actually done any work on the hill that people believe to be the hill of Cumorah. I suspect they wouldn't find anything but dirt. I just don't think Heavenly Father would actually reveal the real location, even to his Prophet. No offence to Joseph Smith intended, just that even he was human and subject to the same temptations as the rest of us. Could you imagine what all those books would be worth if found?

Thank you Pam. I genuinly thought I just missed something. lthough asking when Moroni died was kinda a dumb question. Exactly who was going to write it in the BoM, with it being buried in the ground? Oh! That sounds interesting. Will that be on the churches online store? From reading Joseph Smith History last night it seemed that Moroni wasn't very buddy buddy with the prophet. It came across very much as a teacher/student relationship. Thinking about it, I doubt they talked about anything personal.

The first time I read through the entire BoM was when President Hinckley challenged us to do so. I know what you mean about it feeling abit like reading a novel and like you, I always find it easier to find particular chapters and verses, if I have read it recently. That was one of the reasons I wanted to challenge myself to read them. I was in Gospel Principles class about a month ago and I was so slow at finding the right book, never mind the right chapter and verse, that I really felt ashamed of myself. I knew it was because I had neglected to read them for quite a while.

That is a rather good idea actually. I still wan't to read all the scriptures at least once all the way through each year, But I really like this too. Thank you. I will seriously give this ago.

I would also assume most of that traveling would be at night. Which would slow his pace also. It doesn't seem to me, that the plates were all that heavy, as they did quite alot of travelling in their time and I assume they would have been designed with that in mind. Wasn't there something about Joseph Smith having to run and hide with them, as people were trying to get them from him? That again says to me that they were not that heavy or at least they were not a burden.Your right though. Their not questions that an answer would have any bearing on, so they are not important. I was just curious. I know Joseph Smith talked with Moroni quite alot and just assumed Moroni might have talked about some of those things, But then why would he? Re-establishing the church on earth was far more important than chatting about his life.

Exactly. Thats why I need to slow my pace down, as it's not a novel. I do take quick notes while reading and go back over those. My pace reading the scriptures is slower than normal reading, But my overall pace is still to quick. I would like to try to stretch it out over the whole 10 months in order to make more room for the spirit. Cross-referencing is not something I do enough of, so that is something I need to work on too.

I find it very difficult to read a chapter. I always want to keep going. Giving myself a time limit, works far better and is more likely to prevent burnout.An hour a day, at my normal reading pace would complete the scriptures in 4 months I have at least 10 months to complete all the scriptures, so will try to slow my pace. I'm just a fast reader in general. A book rarely lasts me more than 3 days. The fact that the D&C and PoGP took me around 12 days was quite surprising. I expected it to take no more than 8 days.

Thank you Pam. I have now completed my Commitment for May. As I have completed my commitment 6 days early, I will begin the Book of Mormon tomorrow, instead of June 1st.My original commitment was to complete the BoM and PoGP before my re-baptism, But working it out. If I commit to reading my scriptures for one hour per day at the same pace as I have been this month, I should complete the standard works of the church within 4 months. My interview is pencilled in for around 10 months time. This basicly means that I should have no difficulty fitting the whole standard works in before my re-baptism. If I manage to complete the standard works in a good time, I will get myself Jesus the Christ, as a reward. Thank you to everyone who posted encouragement. You really did help. Regards John

I would laugh, But the option is unavailable. I am aware that it has no bearing on our salvation. I was just wondering. As some of you may know, I'm working my way through the scriptures at the moment and in a lot of places it says that "this person" walked x days from here to there and "this person lived x years after this event and then died/was taken by God and such like. I couldn't remember anything like that with Moroni and thought I may have just missed it. I just realised. When Moroni died, it couldn't have been in the plates, as he was the one who buried them. I am such an idiot. I obviously didn't miss it, because it wasn't there to miss. Thanks guys. Even though none of my questions were answerable, I am still greatful that you all took the time to tell me.

I have been informed by the wonderful and wise Pam, that my questions were not dumb after all. And when Pam speaks, I listen. My questions were; How long did Moroni live after burying the plates in New York? Once he died, he couldn't exactly go and write about it, so this was still kind of a dumb question, although I did think it possible that he may have told the Prophet at some point during their time together. Did he walk there or did he have a horse? I knew that anti-mormons like to do the whole "There were no horses in the BoM times in the Americas" and was fully aware that this probably refered to another similar animal or beast of burden. Where did he travel from? I saw on youtube that some "experts" are thinking that the BoM area is a small stretch of land connecting the US to South America. I was hoping that the awesome people here could confirm that. I don't trust youtube experts, But know that alot of the people here are amazing at these kind of things. How long did it take for him to get to the place where he buried the plates? The answer seems to be 21 years, not in a straight line though. Please see post 8 below by Blackmarch for more details.

Woo hoo! D&C completed on May 23. I'm now going to see how far I can get through the PoGP and JSH sections, before the end of the month. I wish to start the BoM and continue through all the standard works continually from this point onwards for the rest of my life. Although I stated in my OP that I wanted to start the BoM on June 1st, I will not begin it until I have completed the PoGP and JSH sections first. For many years this has been something which I wished to address and now I finally am. Thank you.