Week 50 - Creative Come Follow Me - Insights

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[00:00:00] Introduction

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Hey everybody. Welcome back. This is week 50 of Creative. Come follow me for the Old Testament, and we have good stuff. This week. We're back in the minor prophets, so you've got two ones. This week we're gonna be in Haggai and Zechariah, and if I had to pick a theme, my kids tease me, even Jason teases me about the fact that I pick movies and I relate the scriptures to movies.

It's just how I learn guys, I can't help it. If I had to pick a movie theme for this week, it would be Hoosiers. There are probably a whole bunch of Cinderella stories, movies that fit this. Type, but here's why I think Hoosiers fits really well. Basically what's happening in time, these two prophets are contemporaries of each other.

So normally in the week we have to study prophets who are speaking to different times and different groups of people. This week these two are actually prophesying around the same time to the same group of people. And the people they're teaching are the Jews who have come back finally from Babylon.

So after those 70 years of being in exile and being [00:01:00] under the thumb of the Persians and the Babylonians, they finally get to come home and start to rebuild things. And there's this legacy that begins and then it drops off. So you know how the beginning of Hoosiers, they're like telling this story of how they used to be this epic team and they used to be so great.

And then there's been this long span of time. Nobody's been particularly great, and no one has good expectations of these kids. And then a coach comes in and he changes everything, right? He comes and he turns them around. It's not that he all of the sudden has amazing players to work with. It's that he brings out the amazing in the everyday players that he has.

And that's what I feel like these prophets do. I know, I know. Just roll with me. You guys, you're gonna see it. But they, they managed to inspire the people because when they started, when they came to Babylon or when they came to Jerusalem from Babylon at the beginning, they had permission from Cyrus to rebuild the temple.

In fact, that's why he allowed them to go to Jerusalem. And they started, they just never finished the temple. So kind of similar to what we saw in [00:02:00] the Doctrine and Covenants, where they'd get the foundations laid and then people would get nervous or they would look at their sad circumstances and say, there's no way we can build the temple to the Lord.

That's kind of where, that's how the stage is set for this. Set of time and how it turns out is awesome, right the same way Hoosiers ends. Awesome. These people will build the temple. They will like rally as a team. And what we learn from it is how to listen to the prophet, why it's worth it. Why did it matter so much for a temple to be built in this time?

Why did the Lord care so much about them making covenants now, especially after this long season of being separated from him for a time at least via the covenant? And I just loved it. I really loved it. So grab your scriptures, grab your notes, you guys, we got things to do. Let's get started.

[00:02:56] Haggai Chapter 1-2

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When you study the book of Haggai, you have to pay attention to the [00:03:00] dates. I actually didn't pay attention the first couple times I read it, and then I started to wonder why he was so specific about dates. You know, with previous prophets you might get like a, um, you know, they lived in the reign of Zedekiah or something with Haggai you get like down to the day and I wondered why.

In fact, it was written in my margins with big question marks for a while and. I found the answer. So when you're in this chapter, especially in the notes, go and watch for those dates and what they might mean because I think Haggai is coming to them at a very specific time. They, this is the time of harvest.

So if you look in chapter or verse one, he's basically saying, this is the time of harvest where they should be bringing in a bounteous crop. And they're not. In fact, it's been a really poor harvest and they're struggling to understand why. And what hi guy comes in to say is, I know why. It's because you've got your eye focused on the wrong things.

You set aside what God needed us to do and you started focusing on what you thought was best for the community. And so, hi guy's gonna work to try and [00:04:00] turn their attention to what will really help. So he talks to 'em about it. He says, basically what you're saying in two is this isn't the time. I loved this because I do this all the time.

You know how you get a prompting from the Lord or you. Even direct prophetic commandments, you know, like about doing, come follow me better. This is how I felt. This is how I felt in 2019, where he was like, you know, do this church at home. Do it powerfully. I promise there's these big promise that will come.

And I heard President Nelson say it and I was like, this isn't the time. You know, we had all kinds of medical reasons why that was hard and other things, but the prophet had said, this is the time. And I basically said, can't be. And that's sort of what's happening here, is they're saying to the. It can't be time yet.

What I think is really interesting about this is I don't think they were lazy. I don't even think they were vain. I think they were busy. Um, you know that because they've been building their houses. Remember they came from, they were in Babylon for 70 years and finally got a [00:05:00] chance to come back down and everything was in ruins, literally ruins all throughout the city.

So they started building the temple, and then they ran into conflict. Remember that? We studied it with the Samaritans back in Ezra where because they wouldn't allow the Samaritans to inject how they interpreted the gospel into the temple. The Samaritans started to work against them and caused all kinds of trouble for them.

They're dealing with all kinds of obstacles to doing the right thing. And they're also struggling to even have a city, you know, like I imagine they had to redo all the fields and clear the rubble so they could build a house. So all those factors are playing in here, and they're. It's hard. They're busy, but they're missing something.

So that's Haggai's job is to help focus their eyes. So what he says is the same thing Elder Bednar just said to us in conference, says, consider your ways. They're looking at this drought and this poor harvest and saying, why has God forgotten us? We came back to this holy city. How did he forget us? And what Haggai is [00:06:00] saying is you forgot, God.

We came here to build a house to him. If we can do that piece first, everything else will fall into place or fall out of our lives, just like President Vincent said. So he's trying to get them to prioritize. So he has this epic verse in six where he says, you have sewn much. You've been busy, but you bring in little.

You eat, but you have not enough. You drink, but you're not filled with drink. You clothe you, but there is none warm. And he that earneth wages earneth wages to put in a bag with holes. Don't you just love that? It's like a whole bunch of object lessons in one little verse. He's just trying to say, I know you're busy.

I know you're tired. You're putting your effort into something that can't last. It's the same way. If you know anybody who. I don't need a covenant path. I can lead a good life parallel to the kind of, I have a, I have a few people like this in my life, you know, who say things like, I don't need covenants and I don't need church on Sunday, and I don't need to gather with [00:07:00] other saints.

I can lead a good life without all those things. And you certainly can. But what the Lord is saying, especially to these people, is when you choose that life to try and just be busy doing good things, you're left to your own strength. The Lord will always love you. He will always be with this people. What he wants to do is love and bless them.

He can't bless them with a bounteous harvest unless they make covenants with him. He can't bless them with the strength they need to get that wall built. Unless they make covenants to him. He, he wants to give those blessings out. They just, , they've created a barrier and they don't even realize it. So Haggai is warning them about that.

What I love about this particular group of people is they listen. So if you look in 12, it says, they obeyed the voice of the Lord. They heard the prophet and they said, all right, let's get back to building. And I just, there's so much positive spiritual momentum in these few short verses at the end of Haggai one, because not just the people decide to build, but the [00:08:00] leaders, right?

This is, we've got the civic leader and the church leader, and all the people, they're all gonna come together and they're all gonna get this temple built. So it's this resurgence of. We can do this, you know, and this is when in Hoosiers, when they finally start to catch on, like, oh, I think we, I think we can do this.

And so they focus and they get, you know, it's almost like you can see that training montage play out in at the end of Haggai because their hearts are getting knit. In fact, I think that's a big reason the Lord wants us to take on these enormous projects that we don't have enough supplies for. Just the same way we saw with the saints in Kirtland.

He gives them this impossible task to build a temple when they have so, so little and so much opposition. Because when you take on an impossible task, the Lord strengthens you. You need to be on your knees. You need each other in profound ways. These are people who've lived in a weird other world for a long time, and now the Lord wants their hearts knit.

So He gives them this epic building project and they [00:09:00] all say, okay, let's go. Just because the Jews are willing to build temple now, doesn't mean that any of their obstacles or any of their fears are magically gone. It just means they'll have the strength they need. They'll have the hind's feet like we talked about last week.

So they're trying to engage, but they're gonna have some moments of doubt, right? And a big piece of that doubt comes from comparison. I can't remember who said it. You know, comparison is the thief of joy. And you almost feel that happening here in chapter two because they're struggling with what the temple used to.

I think as I studied this and gave these people the benefit of the doubt as I studied, I really think a big reason they didn't build the temple is because they didn't think they could build it as well as the others had. They loved the Lord and wanted to build a house that was just as glorious as what had to have been built before.

But they can't, they don't have the means. They don't have the stuff. So they focused on their houses and their crops saying, when we earn enough money, we can build a fancy house for the Lord and I just, you know, I [00:10:00] got that. I, I feel that there's sometimes in my life when I do that same thing where my heart is in the right place, but my execution is a little off.

So that's what's happening with them too. But what I love is Haggai's response. He basically says, you're afraid of comparison. You're trying to fill in gaps on your own trust that the Lord will do something marvelous here. So you see in the verses, he encourages them to be love is Haggai's

he says, I know you remember how great the glory of the last temple was. That's in verse three. And then in four, be strong. Don't be afraid. Don't be afraid of your inadequacies. That's what I've written in mine. Inadequacies steal joy. So he says, don't be afraid, cuz remember the Lord is with you. What this reminded me of is, um, when I was scared to speak at time out for women, it was one of my bigger events.

I think there were over 2000 people coming and I'd never spoken to any crowd that large. And so I was texting with my dad about how scared I was to speak in front of a crowd that big. And he basically said, Maria, you plus God equals the [00:11:00] majority . Something simple like that. And I just, that's what Haggai's trying to say.

It's that you're forgetting this isn't about you. This is about your devotion, your discipleship. If you show devotion to God, he will fill in, he'll bring the glory. You don't need to bring the jewels and the gold and the silver. He doesn't need those things. What he wants are disciples. He wants people to come and become this like one knit people that will build a house of the Lord to him so he can endow them with power. So that's what he says. Fear ye not. And then in seven, I will fill this house with glory. Saith the Lord of hope. I love this cuz so many of the commandments or directions I get from the prophet, I sit there and think I can't possibly do that well enough.

I can see other people who've done it better and I can't possibly do that very well. And what he often will say as I'm wrestling with those insecurities is he'll say, oh Maria, I, I bring the glory part. You just have to show up. I see that all the time with the callings that I'm trying to do despite my inadequacies.

[00:12:00] Uh, he brings glory to whatever we bring to the table. If we just show up with an open heart saying, I don't know how this is gonna work. Um, I love the way Sister Craig talked about it in conference. So she referenced the story of the lepers, and when the savior was healing the lepers, one of those encounters, he says to the lepers, go and speak to the priests and tell them about the healing.

But when they leave to go speak to the priest, they're not healed yet. They still have leprosy. So somewhere along the way of choosing to be obedient, they're healed. It's the act of choosing to walk into uncertainty. And keep going. That allows them to be healed. I think that's what it means when he says, thy faith hath made thee whole, because they actually had to have the, the ability to say, I can't see it, but I trust you.

It's the same thing. Remember when we were studying the Book of Mormon and the brother of Jared and how the verses don't actually talk about the stones lighting up? You know, we know that they're touched by the finger of the Lord, and we know that by the time they're in the [00:13:00] ships they light the way. But what we don't know is if they were.

In the middle. It doesn't say that in the verses. So I love the visual of the brother of Jared putting in these stones into the ships that are still dark and then setting sail and then the stones light. I don't know if that's the way it shook out, but I think that fits with a lot of other stories that we've studied in the Old Testament and that we'll see in the New, there are these moments of step into the darkness and the light will come around you.

I just think this is one of those where they're gonna have to build this temple knowing it's not gonna be pretty, it's not gonna be gold, it's not gonna have jewels. It's not gonna look like it did in the past, but they're gonna build it anyway. And if they do, then the Lord will bless them. In fact, what he says by the time they get to verse nine is, this house is gonna be more glorious than the other one because it will have you in it.

And you is like someone who trusts in God. Someone who knows they need an endowment of power, they need God to touch these stones. Right? That's, that's what makes this temple. [00:14:00] Beautiful to the Lord is because they put in everything they had. You know, it's that widows might, I'm gonna put in everything I have and trust that you'll make up the difference.

And he does. Then you a little further in a chapter about three months later and now this is the time of planting. So that makes a big difference cuz now Haggai's, message is gonna change a little bit. He's talking about, there's a couple questions in there where they're basically saying like he uses, he uses questions that people have as a way to teach the gospel.

So the questions they have are, if we encounter holy things or come close to them, does that make us holy? And the priests of course say no. And then he says, if you encounter dead things, remember that's against the Law of Moses to touch dead bodies and things like that, and he says, does that make you unholy?

And they say yes. And he said, that's basically what's happening with the temple. You're assuming that because the foundations of the temple are here in the city that you might be wholly by association. That's not the case. We, we get into that trick sometimes as well. And then he uses the second example to [00:15:00] say this thing that's unfinished, the temple is basically like this dead body.

It's this thing that's, that was glorious and now isn't. And he's saying when you encounter those things, you actually become unholy. The reason I thought this was interesting to study, and you can go in deeper in the notes, I think what he's saying is, be a finisher, that there's power in being a finisher.

It made me look at my life and try and think about things that are undone. Are there things that. Are in my past that are not finished. You know, people I need to forgive relationships that I need to remedy. Um, they're, they're like this thing that sits in the middle. That it's that temple that stopped being built.

And as soon as I turn to the Lord and say, okay, it's time I want to fix, I want to finish, then he can give me the power I need. I love the way Haggai phrases it, he says in 15, and now I pray you consider from this day and upward meaning don't get sidetracked in the last 19 years of. The same way the brother of Jared was told, don't, [00:16:00] don't sit and think how terribly you've been to sit on a beach for four years.

Let's just get in the water. And that's what he's asking them. Consider your ways and then go forward. And not just forward, but upward, right? It's gonna be this uphill climb that they will take muscle, it will take determination, but it will have an incredible view if they just will go upward. I think it's the same thing the Savior says to people in the New Testament all the time.

Go thy way. Sin no more. It's don't look at the past, understand where you are today and go upward. It's this beautiful invitation. There's some great quotes like from Sister Browning in the notes about this idea, but it's an invitation to. One of my favorite parts in this chapter that I just can't miss is 19.

So this is again where you see the dates matter because remember they, this is planting time. So this is December where they would plant the seeds, but nothing is growing yet. They just planted in this new way, right where the temple's being built and now they're devoted. And the last time they planted that [00:17:00] harvest was dismal.

And so he's saying to them, are there any seeds yet in the barn? Like in 19 says, is the seed yet in the barn? Is yet the vine and the fig tree and the pomegranate and the olive tree? Have they brought forth any fruit? And the promises from this day? If you will look forward and upward, I will bless you.

That's the promise, but they have to trust him enough to plant seeds. It's the same thing we learned from Alma in Alma 32. They can't see the fruits yet, but they can see that they are coming. They are trusting that these seeds of building a temple to the Lord will give them bounteous blessings. Not just physical blessings, but all the covenant blessings that they need and want.

That's what's coming. In fact, when you look a few more verses as you flip the page, you're gonna see a promise of a restoration of things that there will. A great king that comes through the Davidic line that they will be restored. Cause remember right now they're still under the thumb of the Persians, even though they're back in Jerusalem.

They're not independent yet. They still have to pay tribute to the [00:18:00] Persians. So he's saying to them like, there will be a time when you will have power and you'll have authority. There'll be a signet ring, you know, like a, a symbol of authority that will be with you and this line. And they're all illusions to the savior who will come through this line of David.

All of that's prophesied by Haggai so guys don't skip Haggai. I loved his.

[00:18:25] Zechariah 1-3

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Zechariah is a different kind of coach than Haggai, but he's teaching the same basic group of kids, that same group of people who've come out of Babylon. He's also teaching those who are still in Babylon. So remember when we studied this back in Ezra's time, that there were some who said, actually Babylon's not so bad.

You know, they got pretty comfortable in Babylon. So a lot of Zechariah's message will be to try and get people to come back to Jerusalem. And it's interesting to me how he does it. So if you look in the verses around three, he basically says, turn me unto me saith the Lord of Hosts, and I will turn unto you.

It's this comeback to Jerusalem. Remember who you are. And [00:19:00] then he says, be not as your fathers. Remember, it's not this generation. That lost the covenant. They just are dealing with the ramifications of a lost covenant, but it's their fathers that worshiped idols and forgot the poor. And so it's kind of this new beginning the same way in, you know, an epic Hoosier's kind of movie.

They're saying, forget all the people who had the lull. You know, remember the champions that we once work and that's what he's trying to teach them. One of the, um, conference talks I read this week talked about the veil of forgetfulness. And as I was sort of letting that phrase bounce around in my head, I realized, well, through the help of the spirit, I guess that, that, that phrase is so lovely to describe what's happening here because it's not, it's not a veil of amnesia.

You know, the Lord isn't trying to completely block our view of heaven when he sends us here and he sends us with this veil of forgetfulness. It's forgetfulness. It's lighter than that, right? It's the same way. Like I might be forgetful and forget where I put my phone at [00:20:00] least once or twice a day. You know, like I forget where I put my phone and I have to retrace my steps to figure out where I set it down, or like the kids' homework or something.

It doesn't mean I don't remember that I had a phone. It doesn't mean I don't remember anything about my day. I just am forgetful. I've missed something. And that's what I think of when I think of that veil. That the Lord will give us opportunities to remember who we are. In fact, President Uchtdorf, at the time he was President Uchtdorf, but he gave this great talk, what is it called?

It's in my margins, A yearning for home. It's in the notes. Um, and he talked about this, that we all have these moments where we'll realize we don't belong here and that we are part of something greater. I think it was the one where he told a story about a dog who found its way home, you know, after a long, long journey.

Um, it's that same idea. You have divine DNA that will help you find your way home. And the Lord's gonna plant little things on your path in this mortal life to help you remember who you are. There's, there's no like cement wall between us and heaven. It's this gauzy, [00:21:00] translucent veil that separates sometimes so that you can see through it.

If you didn't hear this a few weeks ago, I talked about Elder Lund's BYU devotional. It's called Flashes of Light. And he teaches the same principle, but he does it so much better than I can. So go in the notes and find that quote. But basically what he's gonna do is Zechariah's gonna teach in visions. So during the night he's gonna have a series of eight visions.

We don't study all of them this week. Um, so I'm just gonna give you a smattering of a few. But what he's trying to do, I think is remind them about home. So he says to them like, What it's like to be a covenant people. His first vision is about these watchers of sorts that are on horses that are kind of out watching things to figure out when it's time for the children of Israel to come back from Babylon, meaning they're like angelic ministers who are relaying information to God to say, you know, here's what's going on, and whether that's literal or just a simple vision.

I think what he's trying to teach us is that God is always aware and there's always this, when [00:22:00] things are ready and things are in place, and hearts are in the right spot. The work will roll forward. And so you see that, that's basically what happens. They basically say to the Lord, is it time yet? And the Lord responds with, okay, it's time.

And so then things move and they're, the Jews are invited to come back to Jerusalem. That's his first vision and it sort of reminded me of what we read in the doctrine covenants about race and the priesthood and that constant asking, remember the prophets? And the apostles had been asking, is it time? Is it time?

And it wasn't until the Lord said it's time that they moved. And that's what you get in Zechariah one as well. Um, when you get to the end, it talks about the scattering that's happened and how. There's a second vision that explains it. It's, again, it's easier to understand this as get in Zechariah one notes, but basically what he's talking about is a vision of horns, and these are the, they represent power military powers that have conquered the Jews, and the vision is basically teaching that there will be other powers who will come and break those powers down, which is what we've seen with the Assyrians, [00:23:00] Babylonians, the Persians.

We'll see it with the Greeks and the Romans later, that all those powers that have come against the Jews will eventually be broken down as well. So that's what he learns in his second vision. The third vision that happens right in a row kicks off in chapter two. This is when he sees a man with a measuring line.

So similar to what we've seen with, remember when Ezekiel was talking about a man with a measuring line to measure the river at different lengths? That's what he's seeing here. But the man is measuring Jerusalem and he talks about how big and grand it's gonna be, that it's gonna be so big that it can't have.

Which is amazing cuz Jerusalem is known for its walls. Still to this day, they're still trying to dig out the walls of Jerusalem because it used to be completely enclosed, you know, like we talked about with Nehemiah and that's what it's known for. And he's saying, when Zion comes before the Lord is here, it will be so big, it will be so open, um, that you won't even recognize it.

And he talks about it's glory and it's grandeur and that it will be protected. It's not gonna be unsafe because the glory of the Lord will be there and that will [00:24:00] keep the city safe instead of needing to build a bunch of walls. What I think was most powerful to me about this chapter is that this vision happens when Zechariah is gonna wake up to rebel.

He's literally standing, I'm sure in rubble cuz this city has been neglected for 70 years. And so the Lord gives him this glimpse, right? It's the same thing we were just talking about in the last chapter. He gives them this flash of. There's something bigger here. Look farther, try to see the way God sees.

Remember God can see far into the past and he can see far into the future. So when we pray for eyes to see, that's, I think what we're praying for is help me see bigger than what I can see on my own. And I love that this happens for Zechariah here, cuz I think that's a prayer I do all the time where I'm like, I don't understand why I am in the spot I'm in or why things aren't working out the way I wanted them to.

So the example I wrote in my [00:25:00] margins, you'll have to forgive me for getting a little personal here, but I'm making these videos for my kids and my grandkids. So, I hope this helps them appreciate things. But we have two sets of kids. Basically we have our three older kids and then we had a miscarriage and some time.

And then we have our three younger kids. And when we were just getting to the phase after the miscarriage of, okay, it's time to have more kids, I really thought we were supposed to have a girl. I, I was set on it. I didn't, I didn't have like a specific dream where I knew for sure or anything, but I just felt it, I felt like there was a girl that was supposed to be in our family and so we decided to, you know, start things again and get pregnant and it was wonderful.

And then Will came and I will never, you know, ever talk negatively about the fact that Will came cuz he is an utter delight. But I remember being confused when we found out he was a boy about midway through the pregnancy. Cause I thought for sure it was supposed to be a girl. So then I'm like, well maybe we just need to have one more after that.

So then we have one more pretty quickly after Will. And it's Sam and again, Sam's fantastic. I'm so glad [00:26:00] he's in our family. But again, I was like, What, you know, I thought I was understanding Lord, and I don't understand. And by that point we've got five kids and I'm like, that's a lot of kids . So, so I was thinking about maybe, maybe we're done, you know, like I'd loved Will and Sam together they're this little duo that are great together and I thought maybe we're just done.

But I couldn't shake that feeling that there was a girl that was supposed to come and I was struggling cause it was hard and life was hard. And I was like, how, how can I have one more kid and then the Lord in that basically I would describe my, my, uh, understanding of that revelation and my life at that point as kind of the rubble of Jerusalem.

You know, like I was in the thick of things. It was hard. Things were messy. There were lots of kids' stories everywhere. Everything was hard. And I, I was in this rebel and in this moment of clarity, he gave me this sweet understanding. The details are kind of sacred, but what I'll tell you is he gave me a flash of like --an understanding of "Maria there's something bigger here." [00:27:00] I had a sweet, I can't give you all the details, but I had a sweet, um, glimpse of Violet later. Not her physically, it's not like I knew her. We were sitting at the farewell of one of her big brothers and she was sitting next to me and eventually she went up to sing.

And it was just this simple little flash of light. And again, it wasn't like I had a very clear dream and I knew that was from God. It was like this understanding that sort of settled on my soul. Like, do you know how Elder Bednar talks about it? And over time I came to understand, oh no, this is still the right thing and she will come.

And so she did. Right? And, but I couldn't have seen that in, in the rubble, but what I love is that God loves to teach you in the rubble. And if you'll just say, I can't see through this rebel Heavenly Father, what, how do. How do I keep going? What he'll say is I'm gonna show you a little flash of light. I'm gonna give you a glimpse cuz remember that veil of forgetfulness is thin, it's there are places it can [00:28:00] part and he will do that for you.

He did it for me. It's not frequent, it's not always, but it, it does come and I testify to that and you know what an incredible blessing to have these three kids all together, right? Violet came, she was three when Jason was diagnosed and she's basically like our auntie cancer, right? She was this delightful thing to have at the perfect moment when we needed a delightful ball of joy in our house.

So trust in the Lord, he'll take care of you. And I love, that's what he taught Zechariah is, I know you're standing in rebel. Let me show you what the city will be. You know, that can hold him for a little bit longer. So watch for that. And then he promises that he will dwell in the midst that other nations will come.

This Zion that he's building is not gonna be this gated community where all the, where all the righteous lived. It's this big open. There are no gates. There are a thousand roads that lead into this because many nations are gonna come because it's protected by the Lord and he will be in their midst.

That's a pretty epic. The [00:29:00] fourth vision comes in chapter three, and oh my gosh, it's so good you guys. So this is a vision of Joshua who is the high priest or will be, once the temple is built, he'll be the high priest and it's a vision of the process. So remember when we studied back with the tabernacle, one of the High Priest's job is one day a year on the day of atonement.

He is basically a type of Christ where he takes on the sins of the whole community and makes sacrifices so that the whole community can feel the repentance process and begin again. And that's sort of what they're describing here. So they just, he sees Joshua and his clothing is covered in filth. It's he's taken on all that sin and it's a type of Christ.

We're supposed to see him that way. And you just have to love the dialogue that happens in this vision. So basically there is a change of clothes that occurs, and it's as in verse four. Take away the filthy garments from him and unto him said, behold, I have caused by iniquity to pass from thee and I will clothe thee with a change of raiment.

This is uh, [00:30:00] the same thing that happens with the prodigal son and his dad, right? He sees his son come filthy covered in the sins of the past and he says, we're gonna change this. Bring the robe, bring the ring, bring the fatted calf. And it's that kind of visual that, that he catches a vision of. And so he does, if you look in five, it says, put a fair mitre.

That's that a special kind of cap that priest would wear. Put a clean one on his head and clothe them in these holy garments and he'll be ready. What I love is it doesn't just, he doesn't just change his clothes, he teaches them how he can continue to stay clean. I think he's trying to teach us the same principles as well.

So he says, basically, if you'll walk in my ways, this is around verse seven, if that will walk in my ways, and if that will keep my charge, then now shall also judge my house and I shall keep my courts and I will give the places to walk among these that stand by. And if you go into the footnotes, the "these," the antecedent of that is the heavenly messengers.

So he is basically saying to this, [00:31:00] To Joshua, who will be the high priest. If you will honor my covenants, if you will live the best you can, I will. I will let you take this role. You will be this high priest for the people, and that's the vision he has. And then he extends it further by saying, And you are a type for the great high priest who will come.

So that's where he talks about his servant and this branch, branch is a representation of Jesus Christ, who will be the great high priest who will come. Every high priest and every day of atonement was supposed to help people see the savior. It's interesting because a lot of the verbiage in these chapters talks about the savior being this conquering hero.

So you can see where the Jews got kind of confused, where they thought when the savior came, he would conquer Rome and he would free them from all their bondage and what they were supposed to see, or what least what the prophets, I think were trying to help them understand, are these moments like this is the saving that the savior does.

He redeems you, he saves you from sin and death. That's the savior that we worship. [00:32:00] And that's what Zechariah I think, was trying to teach us through this vision that he has in chapter.

[00:32:11] Zechariah 7-9

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We're gonna jump all the way to chapter seven now, and this is where you're gonna see something interesting happening. So basically it helps to have a little backstory because during those 70 years when the Jews were in Babylon and they were in bondage, they had more feasts and fasts to commemorate the loss of Jerusalem because, you know, they were sad to lose the temple.

They were sad to be pulled out of their golden city. And so they remembered it by having these long fast and mourning processes and these traditions developed. And now that they're back in Jerusalem and the temple's being rebuilt, they're kind of wondering, do we need to still do those? Do we need to have those same, you know, plans?

And the answer they get is really interesting. One, I think it mirrors what we've heard from President Nelson lately, where he basically is saying You're worried about the wrong things. So the answer they [00:33:00] get. First, evaluate the motives behind your fasts and your feasts. Were they really about me to begin with?

Were they really about coming closer to me? I, I think this is poignant for us cuz there's a lot of traditions that we have in our church or in our families that maybe need to be reevaluated. Are, are our focus? Is our focus really on the Lord and coming closer to him? So that's his first question. His second one is, stop worrying about the specifics about which feast you need to have and what days you need to fast focus on the gospel.

What does it mean to be a disciple of Christ? And as you know from the song, like Disciple means you love others as He loved them. That's what it is by this show. All men know that you're my disciples if you show love one to another. So if you look in nine and 10, that's His message show mercy and compassions every man to his brother in 10 oppress, not the widow and the fatherless, the stranger nor the poor.

Let none of you imagine evil against your brother in your heart. He's basically saying, stop worrying about the details. Focus [00:34:00] on the gospel. What does it mean to be a disciple? In fact, just with my YSAs this week, our whole, my whole lesson was on discipleship, and so I was actually scanning the gospel library app.

I went into general conference, and I don't know if you've seen this, but in the Gospel library, when you go and click on conference, it splits into three categories at the top, and you can sort it by speaker or by date or by topic. If you go in topic and you click discipleship, 19 of the last of the talks from this year in 2022 were about discipleship.

That's a huge number 16 from just this conference, if I remember it. So that's a big message. He's saying that's what it means to be a disciple, to care for others the way I would care for them to care for them one on one. Um, in fact, I love that that's how it's phrased in that verse in John that says, if you have love one to another, because their feast and their fast were these great big communal worship sessions and he's saying, that's all great if you're really good at this one on one, don't you feel that with us?

Like it's sometimes easier to be a [00:35:00] disciple in the big, you know, ways where I can show up for church and I can show up for conference and I can, you know, and it's harder to be a disciple in the one-on-one ministry. So I love that John's verse focuses on one to another. The one is powerful to me. So that's his invitation.

And then he warns about what's been holding them back. So if you look at 12, he says, you've made your hearts like stone. He's saying you're not feeling the promptings from the Lord to take care of the poor or to take care of the fatherless because you've set your hearts against him. I just thought this was a fascinating concept we've seen in the Book of Mormon, we saw on the Doctrine and Covenants, this idea of how I can make my heart.

so it can't feel, you know, I can choose to make something hard, so why would we ever pick that? And I think the reason I pick that sometimes is I don't wanna feel everything because, you know, sometimes you're sort of bracing yourself the same way. I might go into, my daughter was trying to convince me to watch Hallmark movies, which it's just not my jam.

And so I, I go [00:36:00] into them with this sort of like wall of, I don't care how cheesy and cute you are, I just don't care. And that wall means I don't feel anything and I miss on the joys and the sadnesses is that other people experience. That's what happens. I think spiritually is we, we set a wall cuz we don't wanna feel or we're afraid to feel.

Sometimes I think it's cuz I'm afraid to be accountable for what I know is true. And so I build up this stony wall around my heart and his invitation is, oh, don't go there. In fact, as you're a disciple, as you choose to love one another, it will keep your heart supple and soft. And that's what he needs in his covenant people.

After he teaches them why they got scattered in the first place. Now Zechariah is gonna focus on why it's worth it to stay the same way. I think President Nelson is doing this for us. He's saying this is the greatest time to be a member of the church. This is, there are bigger miracles coming than have ever been seen before.

It's that same kind of momentum that Zechariah is trying to teach them. So he talks about Zion and he says, remember, they're in ruins. They're in [00:37:00] rubble, and he's talking about this same city, how it will look in the future. Zechariah has been given eyes to see something that the others can't. So he's trying to share that with them, and I love the way he phrases it.

So he basically says, when when we have Zion, when the Lord is with us again, we'll have the mountain of the Lord. We'll have the temple back in four. It says, old men and women will walk in the streets. There won't be fear anymore. There won't be war and devastation. I mean, think of the. How it is now. Like it's hard to imagine having that same patch of land be a place of absolute peace.

How many of us have thought like, oh, I wanna take a trip to the holy land. And then you're afraid, cuz you don't know if there will be crisis happening then. So this idea of you'll be able to walk around freely and it will be a place of peace, is a beautiful thing. I like it even better in five where it says, and the streets of the city will be full of boys and girls playing in the streets.

I just love that visual. I love that the prophet uses that. It reminds me of, you know, when, when my kids were little, we, one of my [00:38:00] favorite things to do was to go to my wine family reunions because they were always kind of out in the middle of nowhere and they had tons of cousins to play with and no electronics really.

And it was just this Zion, for me it was, I, I didn't have to worry. I could sit and play cards or laugh and talk with my sisters and I never had to worry that my kids were in danger cuz there, that we were in a place of peace and there was safety and there were no bad guys. You know? Like it was just this.

Comfort and I knew that there were so many other aunts and uncles who would look after my kids that I could just enjoy it. And I just think that's what Zion is. Zion is like a giant family reunion where you're in a safe place that is happy and is full of people you love and it will just be delightful. So that's what he's describing for me.

He talks about the miracles that will come. He talks about how he will save them, that he will be among them, and that he will be their God. That's important cuz remember, they're just reforming this relationship, just like President Nelson has taught us. Covenants are about forming a relationship with God and he's trying to say to them, as soon as you come my [00:39:00] way.

I'm your God. In fact, I've always been your God. I'm just waiting for you to want this relationship back. So he promises that that will come, that all those blessings will come. When you flip the page, you can see that that's just not gonna happen automatically. They have to do some work like, that's what I put at the top of Zechariah eight is that fear not to do good like the Lord needs you to work.

So he says, let your hands be strong in verse nine. To help move this work forward. And then he says in 12, the seeds are gonna be prosperous, the vine will give fruit, meaning Zion's gonna produce so much goodness that it'll take a lot of hands to gather all of that good. And that that's work, right?

That's what the missionaries are doing right now. That work of gathering the fruit that's out there is work. And so he's inviting us to be strong. So you see that again in 13. Fear not. But let your hands be strong. I love the way second Timothy says the same message. He says, you [00:40:00] know, like God doesn't give you a spirit of fear, but of power and of love and of a sound mind.

That's what it means to be strong. It means I'm gonna put my shoulder to the wheel. I'm gonna jump in and I'm gonna do what I can, even if it feels limited to me, cuz I trust that the payoff is worth it. Right? That's what happens. So then as you go a little bit further, you'll see in 16 he tells them exactly what they need to do.

Cuz they've learned a lot of what they're not supposed to do and what, where they're not supposed to turn. And he is not gonna just leave them with that vacuum. He's gonna say, let me fill it in and tell you what you need to do. And so that's what he says. These are the things that you should do. Speak ye every man, the truth to his neighbor, execute judgment of truth and peace in your gates, and let none of you imagine evil in your hearts against his neighbor.

Love no false oath. These are the things, I hate saith the Lord, he doesn't want them to fall back into their old ways. He's not even talking about idol worship yet. He's just talking about how they interact with each other. He's saying, be my disciples. Love one another the way I've taught you. Be compassionate and kind and patient.

I love. Wendy [00:41:00] Olrick taught me. She gave a talk once where she said, when I think about people's choices, what I try to do is to say, what's the most generous reason I can give for their actions? And I've started to kinda live by that mentality. It helps me stay above resentment and bitterness by just assuming the very best I can possibly imagine about their intentions.

It doesn't even have to be true. It just gives me some peace to be like, there's probably more to that story than I can possibly see. And that's what I see in these verses. He's saying like, Elevate a little bit and try to try to assume the best in everyone around you. And if you do that, you can choose joy.

In fact, what he says in 19 is there's not gonna be feast and fasts of mourning anymore. It's all the feasts and celebrations will be catered to joy. You won't need to look back and mourn what was lost because you'll be in the good and there will be so much good that you'll only look forward and upward.

And so he invites them to [00:42:00] pray, speedily, pray, just like we see in second Nephi, it's this understanding of come and let's go together. In fact, he says that that discipleship that they're gonna show in Zion will be magnetic, that others will see that and they will gravitate towards Zion and they'll say, I see the goodness that you have here, and I want some of that.

And that's a promise of the last days that there will be a magnetic power to the saints in Zion. But it's not that they themselves will be. The magnet is that the light of Christ they carry because they are disciples will beam out, and that's a promise we hear from prophets all the time. It shifts a little bit in Zechariah nine because you get more encoded messages.

You get the feeling that Zechariah has seen great things like the savior coming and being this great king and conqueror, but he has to sort of teach it to others. With some covering because remember, they're still owned basically by the Persians. They're not, Cyrus allowed them to come to [00:43:00] rebuild the temple cuz he thought it would bless his country back in Babylon.

So this is, they have to be kind careful about talking about this great king that's gonna come and dominate the land. And I think that's why Zechariah nine is written a little more cryptically. But you do get these flashes the same way. If you've been in an escape room and you read a clue and you're like, oh, there's something here.

I don't know what it is and I can't decipher it all. But there's something here, I gotta look at this again. So you'll see things like in verse nine where he talks about this great king who will ride to the city on an ass. So on Palm Sunday, when we see those pictures of the savior riding in on a donkey and all the palm leaves are, you know, swaying to welcome him, this is the verse that's based on, just remember that the Jews at that time assumed that that meant he would conquer everything in his path, that he would, you know, turn towards the Roman garrison and he would conquer it.

He just didn't. Instead he went and cleansed the temple and that caused a lot of people to turn away from him. They basically dropped their palm fronds and turned against him. But that's, this is where that prophecy comes from. He also promises [00:44:00] what the Savior will do. It's interesting that they got so fixated on him being a military power, because the verses around here aren't about military reigning.

They're about setting prisoners free, but the prisoners they're talking about are in a dry pit without water. Um, and when you think about that, a dry pit without water is like a well that's run dry and that there are prisoners trapped in there. And when you go on the footnotes and you go in the prophetic commentary on these verses, it teaches that this.

When the savior comes again, it opens this baptismal gate, right when the savior himself is baptized and he sets the standard, it's the covenant path opening up, and that when he is resurrected, that opens up that floodgate for so many others who didn't have that opportunity in their lifetime to be baptized and to be on that covenant path.

So that's, that's the promise that you're gonna see in chapter nine. It's just sort of tucked into the verses in a tricky way, but it ends with hope, right? It ends with that the Lord of Host will defend them in 15, that he will save them like a flock, despite the fact that they've turned against him and that they [00:45:00] will betray him.

He will love them still. In fact, in nine it says, how great is his goodness, and how great is his beauty? That's the promise that is coming. It's the hope that Zechariah always tries to end.

You get another flash of a clue in chapter 10 because you're gonna see that Zechariah teaches them that the reason they were in exile for all that time was because of the choices of the fathers. That's why they landed there, and that's why they had that. Space to think about things and then he teaches about what will still come from them.

Cuz out of this line will still come Savior of the world. But he talks about him as a nail. In fact, if you go in the verses that are linked to this in the footnotes, it talks about a nail in a sure place. Again, this is just a flash of what is coming. What's really interesting about the book of Zechariah is it's one of the most quoted of all the books of scripture by the New Testament apostles.

So they will go through these [00:46:00] writings later and say, can't you see the savior in this? Can't you see him in all these places? This understanding of a nail in a sure place should be a big red flag that this is the savior of the world. One of the things I learned this week from a scholar was that when you have a contract at this time, a covenant made between two people about business affairs or ownership, they would often take that contract and they would nail it to the wall because that's, it was meant to be like this.

Very permanent, very serious. You look at this every day kind of thing, and I love thinking about the savior as that kind of nail too. Something that hangs all the law and all the prophets, they, all those covenants hang on the savior. So I, I like both visuals of the nails. Um, but you'll see a few more things there.

The promise that he will redeem them, that he will bring them back, that they will be his children again, and that he will strengthen them in the Lord. All these promises. This restoration, this covenant relationship coming back together again. They're gonna build up to a climax that we're gonna see in the [00:47:00] next couple chapters.

So you don't wanna miss it. Before you get to 12, 13, and 14, where that climax hits, you have this kind of cryptic chapter in 11. I say that because you guys, I read this several times and tried to understand it. It was one of those times where it got to be like one in the morning and I was. Frustrated because I didn't get it and every scholar I read had a different opinion on it and I couldn't find hardly any prophetic commentary on it.

So I was struggling with chapter 11, and then I have to tell you what happened. So as I was struggling the next morning I got up to try and get back into 11 with this kind of grudge in my heart and what was on my gospel library app. I, it must have been the last hymn that we had sung in the week before in church, cuz it was popping up on my home screen.

But it was as I searched the holy scriptures. So I clicked it. I could just feel the Lord was trying to teach me something. I clicked it and the words opened up and in the, I wrote it in my margins, it says, may my heart be blessed with wisdom and may knowledge fill [00:48:00] my mind. Like I'm gonna go and I'm gonna study these scriptures.

Please just bless my mind so that I can understand it. Here's the answer. I got you guys, as I'm wrestling with these verses, the answer was, Don't worry about what you can't understand. Cause what I found is no one really knows what these verses for sure mean. I think the whole reason we're in this chapter is because it just has another one of those little glimmers of a clue.

Something that the New Testament apostles are going to reference and that's why we need to study it. But honestly, when there's no prophetic commentary and the scholars are all debating, I feel like that's a clue to me to be like, don't worry about it . So if you read 11 and you're like, that makes no sense to me, it's a story about a shepherd who inherits a flock of sheep and basically he makes two sticks and he has to break those sticks.

It's supposed to represent the covenant cuz he gets frustrated with taking care of the sheep. It doesn't go very well. And then he breaks the stakes, which is supposed to represent a breaking of the covenant and a separation from. That's the big umbrella version. But the [00:49:00] key clue that's in here is about the 30 pieces of silver.

So if you go in 10, he talks about breaking the covenant. I think that's supposed to be a clue for us. And then in 12, it talks about they weigh the price, he sells the sheep cuz he is frustrated and he sells them for 30 pieces of silver. And he talks about going to a potter. He's frustrated with that Bryce, and he throws the money at the potter.

And there's these little illusions to what will happen in the Savior's life. These verses will be pulled by the apostles and taught to show that their prophecies about the savior have been tucked into scripture for generations of time. I just don't think it means we have to understand it all perfectly.

So follow the line in that him, pray for help, and I promise you'll get it in the most unexpected ways. Things shift. Gears again in 12, 13, and 14 because now Zechariah is focusing his efforts on helping us see. A far off and that far thing is the battle of Armageddon, why it happens, what's gonna happen during it, and more importantly, what's gonna happen after it.

So you're gonna see [00:50:00] that throughout these chapters. It will sound familiar cuz it's really similar to what we read in Doctrine and Covenants 45. In fact, you kinda wonder sometimes if Joseph Smith was studying this when he wrote Section 45, cuz there's some verses that are so similar. So it helped to read them back to back.

In fact, in fact, I went and watched part of the course from our doctor covenants here to prepare. So one of the blessings being in the course is you can go back on any year and study what we learned back in section 45. So if that would help you with your study of 12, 13, and 14, go watch that insights video as well.

Cuz I thought there was a lot there that it was good to remind myself of. But 12, he begins with what's gonna happen in the interim. So before the Battle of Armageddon, the Jews are gonna have a hard, hard time. He talks about it, that the Lord will remind them that he is. That he knows them. He's been with them.

But they will struggle. They will be a cup of trembling. Jerusalem will be a cup of trembling. That's what it says in two and in three, that they will become this burdensome stone that all the nations of the earth will gather against them and try and attack them. [00:51:00] And then he promises that he will rescue, that he will say what he's describing in 12 to me.

Basically the greatest upset in history. In fact, he uses one of the other greatest upsets as a type to help you understand how big of a Cinderella story this is gonna be. And he refers to David and Goliath. So he says to them, as you turn the page, he talks about how they will feel feeble. That's in eight.

And the feeble among them at that day shall be as David, that's, that's the story he's referencing. You're gonna feel small and the odds are gonna be impossible this day, this battle of Armageddon, the forces of evil and the forces of good are gonna be completely lopsided the same way they were on that field when David and Goliath.

Battling right, but the promise is you're gonna be like David, because you've got me on your side. So it doesn't matter to me if you've got five stones or three. I just need one. And it's going to, it'll take down Goliath, and that's the promise. It's gonna be this incredible upset [00:52:00] that nobody will see coming.

Well, some hopefully will because of the prophecy. Some will see it, but most of the world won't see it coming. And then you see how it comes. So if you look in 10, it says, I will pour out upon the house of David and upon all the inhabitants of Jerusalem, the spirit of grace and supplication, and they shall look upon me whom they have pierced and they shall mourn.

What will happen is after this great champion helps them pull off the greatest upset in history, he will pour out things on them so that they can see. To me, this sounds so much like what we read in Second Kings with Elisha and the servant who can't see the chariots. And what he says is, I pray that you'll have eyes to see, and then the servant can see how big the forces of the Lord really are.

And I think instead of forces and chariots this time, they see him for who he is. He pours out this abundant verb, right? He pours out on them the spirit of grace and of [00:53:00] supplications. And because they experience his grace, their I. They see the wounds, they see how he's been pierced, and they see that he is the God that they've worshiped all along.

Remember, the Jews have loved Jehovah all this time. They still worship Jehovah. This group that has always loved Jehovah will now see that Jesus Christ is and was and will be Jehovah. They have eyes to see and remember, every time you pray for eyes, to see the Lord is expanding your vision to see who you've been, who you are, and who you can be.

And that applies to seeing the Savior as well. We'll have an expanded view, so that's the promise and they mourn. I think it's interesting that this group mourns so deeply because it's not really their fault. You know, these weren't their choices. It's their forefathers who made those choices to turn against the savior, and they've been following those traditions.

It's not their fault, but [00:54:00] I think they mourn for the lost time. I think they mourn for what could have been. That's what I would mourn for. It's the same way I feel when I've missed an opportunity, especially a relationship with someone because of bitterness or anger that I've held on too long. And then when you finally reconcile, you think, why did I wait so long?

You know? Haven't you experienced that with families or friends where you're like, why did I waste so much time? So they mourn and then because of the depth of their mourning, light and wisdom pour out. And that comes in Chapter 13.

[00:54:38] Zechariah 13-14

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I love 13. Oh, it's just got such, the character of Christ is all over 13. It talks about because of this. Change in their hearts. There will be this fountain that opens up, and the footnotes link you to that fountain that we talked about back in Ezekiel 47 of that comes out from under the door of the temple and it heals everything in its path.[00:55:00]

They have opened up a covenant relationship again with him. They are seeing him as he is, and of course the Lord then pours out his goodness. So you see that a fountain opens up in the house of David and that fountain, especially if it ties to Ezekiel like the footnotes teach us, then that means it's a covenant fountain.

It's a fountain where families now can be linked. So you see in two that he's gonna get rid of all the idols. He's gonna get rid of all the false teachers that have muddied the waters for this group for so many generations, and then he's going to bring them together. So he says, come right, and they see him for who he is in six it says, and one shall say unto him, what are these wounds in thine hands?

And he shall answer those with which I was wounded in the house of my friends. I think this is one of the most beautiful olive branch verses in all of scripture, because he could have said any number of things, but what he chooses to say to the descendants of those who turned [00:56:00] against him when he lived on earth is that they are his friends that he wants and has always wanted to be close to them.

He just got wounded, um, because of their choices. But I just think it's this bridge, right? He's saying, this is how I see you. It's how I always see my covenant people. You are mine. You are my friends. I don't just see you for that little sliver of time, those three years of my ministry and how I was treated.

I see my covenant people. I see Abraham, I see Jacob, I see Isaac. I see all all of that. I see all that. You will be down the road as all my people are gathered in, and we build Zion when he sees his people. That's what he sees. They only might have been able to see where they are now. And so they mourned and they worried and he sees so much broader and says, I love you and you're gonna be mine.

And that's what he promises them, that they're gonna go through a period of trying and they're gonna have to learn. And you know, it's in nine, it says, [00:57:00] you'll be refined as silver and tried as gold, but you will know that you are my people. It's not gonna be an automatic, you know, everything, and we're all fine.

It's, they're gonna have to learn and work and the same way we are, we're gonna have to refine our testimonies and refine our discipleship, but he'll be with them in this process the same way he's gonna be with us in this process. I, I just love the, the balm of Gilead kind of feel to chapter 13. Take your time with that one.

One of the biggest messages that jumped out at me after reading chapter 13 was this understanding. His, the scope of his forgiveness. And that gets amplified in 14 because he saves them. He doesn't just restore the relationship, he swoops to save them. And this is the battle of Armageddon, like the heat of the moment.

This is where you're gonna read about the savior's foot touching the amount of olives and it will split. It's what we see in D&C 45 where it will open up this escape route for those who are left in Jerusalem and that that's when they will see him and know who [00:58:00] he is. And Zion will begin to really form, and you can go in the notes and you can learn more about this battle in this day.

But I think the most helpful thing I learned as I was studying chapter 14 is I found myself asking like, how, how did he, do you know, how did he forgive so completely? How did he look past all those old wounds and restore? Just begin again, this new relationship with the children of Israel, how will that happen?

And where I ended up as I was studying is back in Matthew five, where there's this beautiful verse where he says, love your enemies and pray for them that use you and show mercy to them who are unkind. I, I don't have it written down in my margins, but it's like, bless them that curse you and pray for them that despitefully use you.

I think what the spirit is trying to teach me is that the savior actually practices his discipleship Sometimes I try to give him this blanket. Well, he loves everyone like a parent, and therefore, because he loves everyone so much, [00:59:00] there's no. . You know, of course he's gonna forgive, but I think it's deeper than that.

I think he practiced that discipleship. He showed it in his earthly ministry all the time that he turned the other cheek, that he gave people second chances and third chances that he forgave those who were cruel. I mean, even on the cross, he was forgiving those around him. So he practiced his discipleship and he has this epic love for all of his, all of us in all time.

And those two combined are powerful force. And I think ultimately the biggest piece is that he loves our father in heaven and he wants to do his will. And Heavenly father's will was that all his children will be gathered, all of them will be brought to this glorious place in Zion. And so that's what the savior does cuz he always does the will of the father.

And where it ends in 14 is you hear the promises. We're gonna talk about this in the object lessons, but he, he talks about Zion. Such a place that we are so focused on righteousness, that and discipleship, that even the bells of the horses and the [01:00:00] pots and pans in the kitchens say holiness to the Lord because everything is a temple at that point.

I don't think it means, you know where covenants happen, that kind of temple. I think it means it's a holy place. The same way the prophets and apostles today are teaching us to have home centered learning that's gospel supported, cuz the home is a holy place and so we should reflect that, right? We should have holiness in our home.

We should have constant reminders of the kind of home that we are creating. But we'll get to a lot of that in the object lessons. But I really loved the forgiving merciful message that you find at the end of Zechariah. So I hope you love it too.

[01:00:44] Creative Introduction

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Hey guys, it's time for a quick preview of the three object lessons I've got ready for you to, so you can teach this doctrine in a more fun, hands on memorable kind of way. I'm gonna walk you through the basics, and [01:01:00] then for those of you in the course, I'll take you through things step by step. But here's your preview.

First, we're gonna talk about that epic verse from Haga one, where he talks about how they've been busy doing things, but they haven't been building the temple, and he compares it to earning money and putting that money into a bag with holes. So I wanted to teach that with a twist. And for that you're gonna need some straws.

I'm calling this the sip straw challenge. So just some regular drinking straws and then some drinks. If you want to, you take your kids on a soda, run to the gas station and get everybody a soda. Make hot cocoa and have that on hand, or just grab a bottle of water. Whatever you've got handy you'll be able to pull it off.

You also need something to poke the straw with, so you're gonna wanna grab a thumbtack or a sewing pin, something like that. The second one is all about light the world. Because remember, one of the things Zechariah teaches us this week is that the way we show our discipleship is by loving one another, by looking after the poor, taking care of those who need us.

And I think that's the message of light the world to find small ways to help every single [01:02:00] day. So I wanted some new fun way for my family to try that, and I've created a giving machine . So since it's Christmas time, I created an ornament that can go on your tree that mimics the giving machines you see in some major metro areas around the world.

And it has the same idea that as you put goodness into it, then you can preserve a record of what your family does to help those around you. So in addition to the box on the printable, you're also gonna find these cute little cards, and the cards are so that your family can write. What they've done for Light the World.

And then you actually add it to your box, just like you do with the Real Giving machine and hang it on your tree. And then, you know, maybe by Christmas Eve you pull 'em all out and talk about what you guys did for Light the world. So that's your second one. The third one is based on that verse at the very end of Zechariah where he talks about what Zion will be like and that we're gonna have holiness to the Lord emblazoned all over the place on the bells of the horses and on the pots and pans of the kitchen.

I don't know that that is literal, [01:03:00] as much as it is that when Zion comes, when we create that Zion place when the savior is here, we will feel that every part of our lives will be focused on holiness to the Lord. But I loved one of the talks I read from Elder Uchtdorf where he talks about how when the pioneers came.

To this valley. What they did was they emblazoned that message everywhere. Cause remember, they're trying to build Zion just like we are today. So we're gonna do a throwdown. If you haven't scratched off this week's chart, almost to the end of your Old Testament chart, this one's a throwdown week. So you're gonna need to create something that has holiness to the Lord on it, something ordinary and every day.

In some sort of creative way for us. I'm using wooden spoons, but you could do all kinds of things, so get your creative juices flowing and I will help you through the rest.

[01:03:46] Wrap Up

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Before I go, I wanted to give you a little preview into what's coming in 2023. I mentioned this on Instagram, but in case you didn't see it there, one of my goals for next year's course is to help you see how I study. [01:04:00] Um, I know for a lot of you, you have questions about how I find the insights that I find and how I compile them, how that process works.

And so I wanted to let you know that over the course of next year, my goal is to help you study better, as it's always. But I wanna show it to you more hands on this year. So the first thing I would tell you is that you really need the right tools for me. These tools work best, but these might not be the perfect tools for you.

I'm just trying to throw out ideas and options. So if you haven't seen me hold these up before. I use a wide margin scripture when I study. The reason I really like the wide margin scriptures is because they become sort of a rough draft of my scripture study. What's hard about using my actual pretty scriptures is that I find myself wanting to only put the pretty things in them.

I want to wait until I understand an insight fully before I write it in my margin. This is sort of to me like revelation in process. If you go on my Instagram, there's a highlight bubble for Come Follow Me, creative, come Follow me, updates. If you go under my bio, there's a highlight [01:05:00] bubble. You can see me walk through this process, but I like the wide margin because it allows me.

Scribble and write questions in, and then later write the answers that I find and I can tie verses together. I especially like the spiral bound cuz it doesn't take a huge amount of work surface to use it. I can just sort of flop it down right next to my notebook or my iPad and get to studying. So the one I use the most is from a designer called Courtney Casper Letters.

I was actually referred to her by you guys after the Book of Mormon year, and it made a huge difference to my Old Testament study. So I reached out to her this year and asked her to make a few tiny adjustments so that when I purchased. It would be exactly what I wanted, and she decided to make that for everybody.

So this year, if you want to go to Courtney's site, you can find one that looks like this. It's what I'll be using this year. I just want you to know that this is not the only way to study your scriptures. You can just use the scriptures you have on hand, or the digital library that's at your fingertips, and it will work great.

I just wanna show you how I do it. So you have the. [01:06:00] The reason I'm showing you that now is because it takes a 10 days to two weeks to get them to you. So if you want to purchase this like I did, then you wanna go to Courtney's site. She actually created a gateway that's just for people in my course.

So if you go on the discussion boards, I'll send you a link, or if you want to see the process, you can go on Instagram, look for the highlight bubble that says CCFM updates, and it will walk you through and give you the link to her site. But I just want you to know like this is not. Affiliate situation.

I'm not making money every time you purchase. There's no kickback for me in this. I simply wanted to help you understand how I study and why I study this way. And if this wide margin version will help you, I hope you try it out. The big reason I like Courtney's version over what you find in bookstores is that it has all four margins.

A lot of them are hard bound, so you can't flip them over like a notebook, and they tend to get rid of this margin. And I really like having all four cuz I need to write all over the place. So if that's a tool that would help you, I'll [01:07:00] put a link in the discussion boards and you can find out more information.

If you go on my Instagram and look for that, come follow me updates bubble. But otherwise, you should have everything you need. Week 50 is a wrap. Okay guys, thanks so much for being here. I hope you really enjoy your scriptures this week and that the notes and the insights videos will help guide you through them so that you find ways to dive in a little bit deeper.

I know it's Christmas time and you're busy, but I actually think. What we learn, especially from Haggai's message, is that if we take time to give to the Lord, he will find ways to bless us in every other way. And can you think of a better time of year where we need extra blessings in every other way?

Christmas is one of those times when I need those blessings, so I hope you. Don't short sell yourself. Get into your scriptures this week. As always, if you wanna join me for the live, that's Monday at 10:00 AM Mountain Time, that's where I'll recap things and kinda walk you through the object lessons really quickly, so at least you have an idea of what's coming.

You can also post questions on the discussion board. You [01:08:00] can post your submissions for the throwdown on the discussion boards, and then of course, I hope you will share the podcast. You may have noticed last week we started, we changed the free podcast that anyone can access to a video podcast so that you can share with your friends and your family and whoever what this course looks like, sounds like, and feels like a little bit.

Um, other than that, I hope you have a really good week. You guys we're hedging closer to Christmas, so enjoy every minute and I will see you guys on Monday.