The Refiners Fire.

This past summer in the little town of Eagar, AZ, there was a forest fire that burned 840.702 sq mi. It left only a few homes and cabins destroyed. Nobody was injured or killed but many people where evacuated and asked to leave there homes until the smoke settled. The fire lasted months and many hours were spent trying to get it under control. Forest fires are popular in the norther part of Arizona due to the amount of Ponderosa Pine Trees that cover the mountains and the dry summer weather. Fire is an interesting element. It has the ability to be used for much good and also for much bad. Fire can be a wonderful source of warmth in the cold winter nights. It can bring light to a home. It can even give a romantic touch to a dinner. As we also know, fire can bring destruction and pain to those very same things and people.

In the case of a forest fire, the area burned is completely bare of what once was. The forest is black and ugly, the lumber is useless and non-existent. The once beautiful forest is now scared with events of the past. The things that use to make the forest fun and interesting are no longer there. The wildlife has moved on and life is grim. The whole city was dark and the smoke as so thick you could hardly see.

There is however a ray of sunshine that comes with the fire. Have you ever heard the saying " Everything gets better with time."? This is the case with the fire. As years go by the rain will fall one drop at a time and new life will begin to grow in place of the old. The new grows healthy and strong because of the rich soil that is now all around. The trees have a wonderful chance to receive plenty of sun and all that they need. Anything that once was bad for the forest has now been burnt or moved on. After the years go, by the forest is back to normal and most of the time its even better than before.

In our Life at times we are like this fire. We go through life, we work, go to school, have kids, ect. We think things are going well then a life changing even happens. We lose a job, relative or close friend. We lose our home, have to move or to tell you the truth life can just get  a little busy and overwhelming. We begin to look at the world around us and our own lives. We see black and ugly scars that for some reason seem to be all around us. We feel burnt out, useless, and even non-existent. I have felt this way! It is not a happy time!

There is again a ray of hope! It is called the Atonement of Jesus Christ. Just like the fire, time and faith will cure our sorrows and heal our lives from the destruction. Life does move on, things will get better! The Atonement makes it possible. Christ heals from the inside out. He changes us one drop of rain at a time, He help us see out weakness and then strengthens us. (Ether 12:27) He has his arms of mercy stretched out to us! The Atonement of Christ has amazing life changing abilities that will help us change. He invites all to come unto Him, to follow Him that He may make our burdens light. I testify of his love and of his patience.

Avoid The Very Appearance of Evil

One day as a woman was washing dishes and looking out the window. She saw this little bird fly in and out of this tree in the front of her house. As she continued to watch this bird over the next few days fly in and out, in and out, she was wondering what the little bird was doing. So she got a ladder and put it up against the tree and looked in where this bird was flying in and saw that this bird was making a nest. The woman got down and a few days later she got out her ladder and checked again. This time she saw 4 little eggs inside the nest. She was very excited to see this momma bird making a home and raising a family and she couldn’t wait to check on the babies in a few weeks.

One day as she was out working in the garden she heard these little birds chirping. So she got out the ladder again and looked inside. As she looked she only saw 3 little birds and as she looked closer she saw that one was lying towards the back of the nest. She was devastated so see this little baby go. She thought to her self why did this happen why would this momma bird let this happen does she not love her children? As she was looking at the dead bird she noticed a little blood and a puncture in the birds’ chest. The woman looked a little closer and saw a piece of wire twined in the nest. She then got down from the tree and went back to her normal day routines.

                Over the next few weeks she couldn’t stop thinking about this momma bird and why she would bring such a dangerous item into her home. She thought well maybe she just got it mixed in with the twigs and other things she was bringing into her home. Or maybe at the time it was shinny and she thought it would bring beauty to her home. What ever the reason this tiny piece of wire is the very reason why one of her children died.  appearance

                Much of the time we are like this momma bird. We work so hard to provide for our family we are in and out of the house working, playing and trying to do our best to make our home a safe place for our children. If we are not careful we too can sometimes bring in “wires” that can potentially ruin our families’ life. With all the different media, Internet, movies and even friends, we need to be aware of the things we bring into our “nest”.  The Holy Ghost will prompt us on whether or not things are good to bring into our homes or viewed on our TV, computer, cell phones, ext…  We live in a time of fast food, Self check out, fast trak, high speed Internet, instant messaging and all forms of social media. Satan is always on the move to bring us down. Let us as parents and children always be on the look out for potential dangers.