Sunday, April 1, 2012

Memo #139


April 1, 2012 (written April 4, 2008)
To: My beloved family & friends                               share at: http://www.prattmemos.blogspot.com
From: Dad, Grandpa etc. Richard Marden Pratt
Re: Prophetic warnings continued
The ideal society is pictured in 4th Nephi. At the crucifixion of Jesus in Jerusalem a terrible destruction took place in the Americas and most of the people were destroyed. Followed by three days and nights of abysmal darkness. During this darkness a voice spoke from heaven saying: “O all ye that are spared because ye were more righteous than they, will ye not now return unto me and repent of your sins, and be converted, that I may heal you? Yea, verily I say unto you, if ye will come unto me ye shall have eternal life. Behold, mine arm of mercy is extended towards you, whosoever will come, him will I receive; and blessed are those who come unto me. Behold I am Jesus Christ, the Son of God.
3rd Nephi 9:13-15
The survivors did repent and began to live the gospel plan. “Love one another and love me your Savior.” and the results were phenomenal!
“There were no envyings, nor strifes, nor tumults, nor whoredoms, nor lyings, nor murders, nor any manner of lasciviousness; and surely there could not be a happier people among all the people who had been created by the hand of God. Yea they were blessed and prospered....”
4th Nephi 16-18
Yet in less than two hundred years they had sunk back into their old cess-pool of living and in less than another two hundred years all were destroyed and the Nephite nation ceased to exist.
Now let us go back to the Bible and see the prophecies uttered by the prophets and the Savior, himself, concerning our day. “For many shall come in my name, saying, I am Christ; and shall deceive many. And ye shall hear of wars and rumors of wars; see that ye be not troubled; for all these things must come to pass, but the end is not yet. For nation shall rise against nation. And kingdom against kingdom; and there shall be famines, and pestilences and earthquakes in divers places. And these are the beginning of sorrows. And many false prophets shall rise and shall deceive many. But he that endures unto the end, the same shall be saved.
And this gospel of the kingdom shall be preached in all the world for a witness unto all nations; and then shall the end come...For there shall arise false christs, and false prophets and shall show great signs and wonders; insomuch that if it were possible, they shall deceive the very elect... immediately after the tribulation of those days shall the sun be darkened, and the moon shall not give her light, and the stars shall fall from heaven, and the powers of the heavens shall be shaken.....and they shall see the son of many coming in the clouds of heaven with power and great glory. And he shall send his angels with a great sound of a trumpet and they shall gather together his elect from the four winds, from one end of the heaven to the other.....verily I say unto you, this generation shall not pass, till all these things be fulfilled..... Therefore be ye also ready; for in such an hour as ye think not the Son of man cometh.
Matthew 24:5-44
Note: The prophecies of modern prophets agree completely with the Saviors of two thousand years ago. Now let us check back two thousand years before Christ.

Moses touches lightly upon the end days of Israel who had given him so much trouble about 1500 B.C. “Then the Lord thy God will turn thy captivity, and have compassion upon thee, and will return and gather thee from all the nations, whither the Lord thy God hath scattered thee. If any of thine be driven, out unto the outmost parts of heaven, from thence will the Lord thy God ~ 2 ~
gather thee, and from thence will he fetch thee. And the Lord thy God will bring thee into the land which thy fathers possessed, and thou shalt possess it; and he will do thee good, and multiply thee above thy fathers...for the Lord will again rejoice over thee for good, as he rejoiced over thy fathers. Deuteronomy 29:2-9
Note: Each succeeding prophet became more explicit on the future of Israel. And we can’t touch them all in such a few pages but suffice it to say that the chastisements that follow the erring ones and the blessings for the righteous are always the same. Disobedience brings punishment as needed to save them and salvation is the inheritance of the faithful. Or as the psalmist sang: “The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom; a good understanding have all they that do his commandments; his praise endureth forever.”  Psalms 111:10
I love the closing verses of Ecclesiastes: “and further, by these, my son, be admonished: of making many books there is no end; and much study is a weariness of the flesh.”
Let us hear the conclusion of the whole matter; Fear God, and keep his commandments; for this is the whole duty of man. For God shall bring every work into judgement, with every secret thing, whether it be good or whether it be evil.”
Ecclesiastes 12:12-14
Isaiah goes into great detail on the scattering and gathering of Israel but I’ll just call your attention to two verses: “and the Lord will create upon every dwelling place of mount Zion and upon her assemblies, a cloud and smoke by day, and the shining of a flaming fire by night; for upon all the glory shall be a defense. And there shall be a tabernacle for a shadow in the daytime from the heat, and for a place of refuge, and for a covert from storm and from rain. Isaiah 4:5-6
Notice: That in the scary final days there will be safety in three places: #1, the homes of the faithful and #2, the assemblies or churches will be protected by day with a cloud and smoke and by night by a pillar of fire. #3, a tabernacle or temple will also be a place of refuge. This is referring back to Moses and Israel as they were thus protected from their enemies.
I can’t resist a few more verses ~ I love Isaiah!
“Behold the day of the Lord cometh, cruel both with wrath and fierce anger, to lay the land desolate; and he shall destroy the sinners thereof out of it.
For the stars of heaven and the constellations there of shall not give their light; the sun shall be darkened in his going forth, and the moon shall not cause her light to shine. And I will punish the world for their evil, and the wicked for their iniquity; and I will cause the arrogancy of the proud to cease, and will lay low the haughtiness of the terrible.....
For the Lord will have mercy on Jacob, and will yet choose Israel, and set them in their own land; and the strangers shall be joined (converts) with them, and they shall cleave to the house of Jacob.” Isaiah 13:10 to 14:1
Isaiah is so full of information but I’ll leave him now on a note of hope when he says:
“ He (Jesus) will swallow up death in victory; and the Lord God will wipe away tears from all faces; and the rebuke of his people shall he take away from off all the earth; for the Lord hath spoken it.
And it shall be said in that day, Lo, this is our God; we have waited for him, and he will
save us; this is the Lord; we have waited for him, we will be glad and rejoice in his salvation.” Isaiah 25:8-9 (written about 750 B.C.)
“But they that wait upon the Lord shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings as eagles; they shall run, and not be weary; and they shall walk and not faint.” Isaiah 40:31 “Fear not: for I am with thee....I, even I, am the Lord; and beside me there is no saviour.” Isaiah 43:5-11

~ 3 ~    “There is no God beside me; a just God and a Saviour, there is none beside me. Look unto me, and be ye saved, all the ends of the earth; for I am God and there is none else.
If thou turn not away thy foot from the Sabbath, from doing thy pleasure on my holy day; and call the Sabbath a delight, the Holy of the Lord, honourable; and shalt honour him, not doing thine own ways, nor finding thine own pleasure, nor speaking thine own words; then shalt thou delight thyself in the Lord; and I will cause thee to ride upon the high places of the earth, and feed thee with the heritage of Jacob, thy father; for the mouth of the Lord hath spoken it.”
Isaiah 58: 13-14
now listen to the words of Hosea: “Hear the word of the Lord, ye children of Israel; for the Lord hath a controversy with the inhabitants of the land, because there is no truth, nor mercy, nor knowledge of God in the land. (NOW) by swearing, and lying, and killing and stealing and committing adultery, they break out, and blood toucheth blood.....My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge; because thou hast rejected knowledge, I will also reject thee, that thou shalt be no priest to me; seeing thou hast forgotten the law of thy God, I will also forget thy children.” Hosea 3: 1-6
And Joel: “Awake, ye drunkards, and weep; and howl, all ye drinkers of wine, because of the new wine.....for the day of the Lord is at hand, and as a destruction from the almighty shall it come.” Joel 1:5-15
Joel chapter 2 heading reads: “War and desolation precede the Second Coming ~ the sun and the moon shall be darkened. But then he assures us that; “upon the servants and upon the handmaids in those days will I pour out my spirit. And I will show wonders in  the heavens (like airplanes) and in the earth, blood, and fire and pillars of smoke. The sun shall be turned into darkness and the moon into blood, (in appearance) before the great and terrible day of the Lord come. (Great to the righteous, dreadful to all the rest.)
And it shall come to pass, that whosoever shall call on the name of the Lord shall be delivered: for in mount Zion and in Jerusalem shall be deliverance, as the Lord hath said, and in the remnant whom the Lord shall call.” Joel 2: 29-32
Egypt shall be a desolation, and Edom (Edom is the rest of the Arabs) shall be a desolate wilderness, for their violence against the children of Judah, because they have shed innocent blood in their land. But Judah shall dwell forever and Jerusalem from generation to generation. For I will cleanse their blood that I have not cleansed; for the Lord dwelleth in Zion.”
Ibid 3:14-17
Perhaps you have read and heard of the looming water shortage in the U.S.A. it’s in the news all the time. Well even this has been prophesied, listen or rather read: “and also I have withholden the rain from you, when there were yet three months to the harvest, and I caused it to rain upon one city, and caused it not to rain upon another city; one piece was rained upon, and
the piece whereupon it rained not withered. So two or three cities wandered unto one city, to drink water; but they were not satisfied; yet have ye not returned unto me, saith the Lord.”
Amos 3:7-8
And I will bring again the captivity of my people of Israel, and they shall build the waste cities and inhabit them and they shall plant vineyards, and drink the wine thereof; and they also shall make gardens, and eat the fruit of them. And I will plant them upon their land, and they shall no more be pulled up out of their land which I have given them, saith the Lord, thy God.
Amos 9;14-15 (Has and is happening right now in Israel)
all of the past five memos may be summed up then in these few words. A kind and loving Father will not let his disobedient children rush on to their total destruction, as a

~ 4 ~
small child running out into heavy traffic, but will restrict and restrain them by every means necessary to save their eternal lives even if it means cutting short their mortal lives.
And those who are obedient, he blesses immediately and uses them to help in this great work of salvation. In a sense we are baby sitters as we function in various church callings in wards, stakes and missions. So stay valiant and be a Savior in your Father’s house! Study and pray and stay close to your Father in Heaven.
I LOVE   you with all of my heart,
Dad, Grandpa etc. Richard Marden Pratt
As of April 1st grandpa has been gone 3 years. I am so glad he left us with so much wisdom. I know what it means to be born of “goodly parents who love the Lord!” The following activity is one that our family shared with Grandpa for a few years. We hope you enjoy it too. Love, Rose

A fun family activity. Take 12 plastic eggs and put the following in them. Number the eggs. Take turns opening them as a family and talking about the TRUE meaning of Easter. We enjoy this tradition.

#1 (sacrament cup) Luke 22:42 and 44 Jesus then went to the Garden of Gethsemane to pray. Here he took upon himself the sins of the world. His suffering was so great that he bled from every pore.
#2 (coins Mark 14:10-11 and 44-45) One of Jesus’ disciples, Judas Iscariot, led men who were angry with Jesus to Him while he was praying. He did this because the wicked men told him that they would give him 30 pieces of silver for doing so. The wicked men wanted to kill Jesus. One of the disciples cut off one of the soldiers ears but Jesus healed the guard’s ear and was led away.
#3 (soap Matthew 27:24) Jesus was brought to the governor, Pontius Pilate, to stand trail. Pilate was a powerful leader. It was the time of the Jewish Passover and Pilate would allow one prisoner to go free. Pilate found no fault with Jesus and thought to set him free but the people said no set Barabbas free. Barabbas was a thief and a murderer. Pilate knew that Jesus was not guilty but that he was innocent! To show he would not be responsible for the death of Jesus he washed his hands of the mater. He still allowed the mocking and scourging of Jesus before he was taken to be crucified.
#4 (ropes Matthew 27:29) Jesus was bound by ropes, spit upon, severely beaten, whipped and mocked. One of Jesus’ disciples, Peter, was so scared by how Jesus was being treated that he denied him three times. He later repented for he loved Jesus.
#5 (thorns (rose thorns work well) Matthew 27:28) Jesus was mocked and dressed in a scarlet robe. The wicked men made a crown of thorns and placed it upon Jesus’ head. He was beaten and whipped again.
#6 (cross (match sticks make a good cross)Luke 23:33) The wicked men decided to crucify Jesus. They made him carry a heavy cross to a hill called Calvary where he was nailed to the cross between two thieves. A sign was placed above his head which read, “King of the Jews”written in three languages. While on the cross Jesus was offered vinegar to drink. Jesus did not drink the vinegar. Jesus asked John, one of his disciples to take care of his mother. Before he died he cried out, “My God, My God, why hast thou forsaken me?” The soldiers mocked him and he said, “Father, forgive them for they know not what they do”.
#7 (pair of dice Mark 15:24) While Jesus was dying on the cross the soldiers gambled for his clothing.
#8 (small rocks Matthew 27:51 and 54) Jesus hung on the cross many hours. Finally he said, “Father into thy hands I commend my spirit,” and he died. As soon as this happened, darkness and storms arose showing the tremendous grief Heavenly Father felt when he witnessed these things being done to His Son. Some of The wicked people then realized that this must indeed be the Son of God.
#9 (white linen cloth John 19:40) Jesus was wrapped in linen cloth for burial.
#10 (spices (whole cloves work well.)John 19:40) Joseph of Arimathaea, a disciples of Jesus, asked Pilate if he could care for the body of Jesus after he had died. Pilate agreed to let him do this. The body of Jesus was wrapped in linen with appropriate spices. Spices were used to preserve bodies. Mary and Mary Magdalene wrapped Christ’s body in the linen with spices the day Jesus died. (Friday) and then waited until the first day of the week (Sunday) before they returned to do this again---because Saturday was the Sabbath.
#11 (large rock Matthew 28:2) A large stone was rolled across the door to the tomb in which Christ’s body lay. There was a guard set to watch so no one could come and steal the body of Jesus. An angel of the Lord descended from heaven and rolled back the stone and the men on watch started to shake and became, “as dead men>” When the men told the Pharisees what had happened, the Pharisees paid them to tell others that the stone had been rolled away while they were asleep.
#12 (EMPTY  Matthew 29:6; John 20: 15-16) When Mary and Mary Magdalene went to the sepulcher. Their was an angel sitting there who told them to go and tell the disciples that Christ had risen. Jesus first appeared to Mary Magdalene while she was in the garden mourning his death. She thought he was the gardener when he asked, “woman, why weepiest thou?” She asked Him what he had done with the body of Jesus. Then he said to her, “Mary” she turned and recognized Him. Saying “Rabboni” meaning master.
Jesus did rise on the third day! He gives us the gift of Eternal life He has made it possible to be forgiven of our sins through his atonement. He has made it possible for us to live as a family with him and Heavenly Father in the highest part of the Celestial Kingdom! This is the true meaning of Easter!


A fun fa