Deception and the Mysteries of God

“The Lord does communicate some things of importance to the children of men by men by means of visions and dreams as well as by the records of divine truth. And what is it all for? It is to teach us a principle. We may never see anything take place as we see it in a dream or a vision, yet it is intended to teach us a principle.” (Wilford Woodruff, Journal of Discourses p. 286)

“There are among us many loose writings predicting the calamities which are about to overtake us. Some of these have been publicized as though they were necessary to wake up the world to the horrors about to overtake us. Many of these are from sources upon which there cannot be unquestioned reliance.“… We need no such publications to be forewarned, if we were only conversant with what the scriptures have already spoken to us in plainness.” (Harold B. Lee, In Conference Report, Oct. 1972, 128; or Ensign, Jan. 1973, p. 106.)

“Brothers and Sisters, keep the doctrine of Christ pure and never be deceived by those who tamper with the doctrine.” (Elder Ballard, The Trek Continues, General Conference, Nov. 2017)

“When a man goes about prophesying, and commands men to obey his teachings, he must either be a true or a false prophet. False prophets arise always to oppose the true prophets, and they will prophesy so very near the truth that they will deceive almost the very chose ones.” (Teachings of the Prophet Joseph Smith p. 365)

“This incredible blindness which led to the rejection of those truths spoken by prophets and which prevented the recognition of Jesus for who he was, according to Jacob came, “by looking beyond the mark’, Those who look beyond plainness, beyond the prophets, beyond Christ and beyond his simple teachings, waited in vain then, as they will wait in vain now. For only the gospel of Jesus Christ teaches us things as they really are and as they really will be.” (Elder Neil A. Maxwell, On Being a Light address delivered at the Institute of Religion Jan 2, 1974)

“I have learned that strong, Impressive spiritual experiences do not come to us very frequently, and when they do, they generally are for our own edification, instruction, or correction. Unless we are called by proper authority to do so, they do not position us to counsel or to correct others.”

“Be ever on guard lest you be deceived by inspiration from an unworthy source. You can be given false spiritual messages. There are counterfeit spirits just as there are counterfeit angels. (See Moroni 7:17) Be careful lest you be deceived, for the devil may come disguised as an angel of light.” The spiriual part of us and the emotional part of us are so closely linked that it is possible to mistake an emotional impulse for something spiritual. We occasionally find people who receive what they assume to be spiritual promptings from God, when those promptings are either centered in the emotions or are from the adversary.” (Boyd K Packer, The Candle of the Lord, Ensign 1983 51-56, From a talk given at a seminar for new mission presidents, 25 June 1982)

“The Lord has promised to reveal his mysteries to those who serve him in faithfulness. The gospel is very simple so that even children at the age of accountability may understand it. Without question there are principles which in this life we cannot understand, but when the fullness comes we will see that all is plain and reasonable and within our comprehension. The simple principles of the gospel such as baptism, the atonement, are mysteries to those who do not have the guidance of the spirit of the Lord.” (Joseph Fielding Smith, Book of Mormon Student Manual Religion 121-122)

“There is also a restricted and limited usage of the expression mysteries; it is more of a colloquial than a scriptural usage, and it has reference to that body of teachings in the speculative field, those things which the Lord revealed in plainness in this day. It is to these things that reference is made when the elders are counseled to leave the mysteries alone.” (Bruce R. McConkie, Mormon doctrine 2nd edition 1966 524.)

“Satan has shown himself to be an accomplished strategist and skillful imitator; the most deplorable of his victories are due to his simulation of good, whereby the undiscerning have been led captive. Let no one be deluded with the thought that any act, the immediate result of which appears to be benign, is necessarily productive of permanent good. It may serve the dark purposes of Satan to play upon the human sense of goodness, even to the extent of healing the body and apparently of thwarting death.” (Elder James E. Talmage, p. Articles of Faith:211)

“Nothing is a greater injury to the children of men than to be under the influence of a false spirit when they think they have the spirit of God.” (Joseph Smith, Times and Seasons, 1 April 1842, p. 744)

Come Follow Me Lesson - Acts 16:16-18 Institute Manual - Paul Rebuked the Evil Spirit in the Damsel

While still in Phillippi, Paul and his companions encountered a damsel with “a spirit of divination”. Divination is the act of foretelling, or pretending to foretell, the future by using occult practices. Divination, which is also called soothsaying, was and is forbidden to the Lord’s people.

The evil spirit in the damsel bore witness of the divine mission of Paul and his companions, but they rebuked the evil spirit and cast it out of the young woman. The scriptures also record instances when evil spirits bore witness of the divinity of the Savior and His disciples but were rebuked.

Elder Bruce R. McConkie of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles explained why the Lord and His servants reject the testimony of evil spirits: ”The testimony of the devil-led damsel was true. Paul and Silas were prophets; they had the words and power of salvation. But true testimony from Satan’s servants does not lead to salvation. In effect the damsel was saying ‘go ahead and believe in Paul and Silas and this Jesus whom they preach. I agree they and their Master are of God; and since we are now united on that point ( I, Jamie, personally believe this is where things get tricky). You can also continue to follow me and enjoy the fruits of my divination.’ And how many other practitioners of false religions there are who give lip service to Jesus and his doctrines so that people will the more readily follow them and their special brand of ‘saving’ grace. It was for the very reason here involved that Jesus himself forbade the devils whom he cast out to testify that he was the Son of God (Luke 4:41). 

“Teaching prematurely or at the wrong time some things that are true can invite sorrow and heartbreak instead of joy intended to accompany learning… The Scriptures teach emphatically that we must give milk before meat. The Lord made it very clear that some things are to be given only to those who are worthy. It matters very much not only what we are told but when we are told it.” (Boyd K Packer, The Mantle Is Far, Far Greater Than the Intellect, Brigham Young University, 22 August 1981)

"There is indeed a system of gospel prerequisites. Milk must come before the meat. As we grow in holiness, it is vital that we grow steadily and surely, feeding regularly and consistently upon the fundamental and foundational doctrines of salvation. Too often members of the church, supposing that they are deeper and stronger than they really are, make an effort to feast upon heavy meat---doctrinal matters that are clearly beyond the purview of what is taught by the Brethren today---well before they are ready to do so. A friend serving as a bishop indicated that after a member of his ward a good man but one who had wrestled for years with the Word of Wisdom had attended a series of discussions on unusually deep doctrines, he had said, “Bishop, I’m convinced that if I can simply make my calling and election sure, I can then get the strength to stop smoking.” What is wrong with this picture? In Mosiah 4 it reads, “see that all these things are done in wisdom and order; for it is not requisite that a man should run faster than he has strength. And again, it is expedient that he should be diligent, that thereby he might win the prize; therefore, all things must be done in order.”(Robert L. Millet's: More Holiness Give Me, Jan. 28, 2004)

“Some who are not authorized want to speak for the Brethren and imply that their message contains the meat’ the Brethren would teach if they were not constrained to teach only the milk.’ Others want to counsel the Brethren and are critical of all teachings that do not comply with their version of what should be taught…..another sign of spiritual immaturity and sometimes apostasy is when one focuses on certain gospel principles or pursues gospel hobbies with excess zeal. Almost any virtue taken to excess can become a vice." (Elder Quentin L. Cook, Looking Beyond the Mark, Liahona March 2003)

“You may not be aware of it, but there are false prophets rising within and without the Church. They believe they have had revelations, that they know something the First Presidency and the Twelve Apostles don’t know. You need to be very careful of such people. If you are ever approached by anyone who claims special authority or revelation from God outside the sustained priesthood authority, turn and run from them as fast as you can. The Savior said that in the last days even the very elect could be pulled away from the truth by such false prophets.” (M. Russell Ballard, When Shall These Things Be?, Devotional March 12,1996)

"There are some among us now who have not been regularly ordained by the heads of the Church and who tell of impending political and economic chaos, the end of the world---something of the ‘sky is falling, chicken licken’ of the fables. They are misleading members…….” (Elder Boyd K. Packer, To Be Learned Is Good If..., General Conference, October 1992)

“We must gain learning, but we must apply it wisely. The spiritual power line conveys revelation. Revelation is given to the President for the Church, and to leaders and teachers in their respective callings. Personal revelation is provided for the glorification of individual members and families in the Church. These lines are well insulated, and they are not scrambled! Our Father is a God of order! No one else receives revelation to govern the church. It is possible to disregard or even misuse spiritual power. Like cutting the cord with clippers, it is possible to use spiritual power so carelessly as to destroy one’s very connection to that power. Worship strengthens our power line to deity. There can be no true worship without sacrifice, and there can be no true sacrifice without a cause. The cause that earns our love and priority is the cause of Jesus Christ. As we carefully and prayerfully protect the spiritual power line that link us to the Savior, we become more like him.” (Russell M. Nelson, Protect the Spiritual Power Line, General Conference, October 1984)

We are constantly being faced with truth and error and need to be on guard because as President Dallin Oaks said, “Satan is the great deceiver and the father of lies, but he will also tell the truth when it suits his purposes.”

President Russell M Nelson said, “Anything that opposes Christ or His doctrine will interrupt our Joy. That includes the philosophies of men, so abundant online and in the blogosphere, which do exactly what Korihor did.” His Wife Sister Nelson stated, “we must focus on the doctrines of Christ and not every wind of doctrine that blows through a blog.”

“But behold, the Jews were a stiffnecked people; and they despised the words of plainness, and killed the prophets, and sought for things that they could not understand. Wherefore, because of their blindness, which blindness came by looking beyond the mark, they must needs fall; for God hath taken away his plainness from them, and delivered unto them many things which they cannot understand, because they desired it. And because they desired it God hath done it, that they may stumble.” (Jacob 4:14)

A Plague Spreading Through Many Families

Email sent to LDSMarco on 5/29/19 

Hi Marcos,

I to am looking for signs of the Second Coming of Jesus Christ. I have always had an interest in searching the scriptures to understand the times we are living. I am a member of the church of Jesus Christ of Latter Days. 

I have read Julie’s First book of her NDE which I found fascinating to hear of these accounts. I was interested in what she said about this because it testified of Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ but as I continued to hear some of her early interviews with Erik, I really didn’t feel the spirit, and soon lost interest. She touched upon energy healing, which I find interesting but do not practice as I have read Vision of Glory and find the reference to still be of a mystery. 

So when your video came out about her. I was surprised to find how far into all this healing energy has been practiced by her. I’m wondering what her sources is to cast out demon, if it’s not from the priesthood line of Authority. Every prophet knows their line of Authority and is sustained by the members of the church.

Here is a portion of how it has affected some people. Have you seen this from her RS President?

"I was the RS president in our ward when a couple were going through some issues over Julie. Julie was telling this man that he had been Moroni in a different estate and that he was to be a very integral part of the tribulations. She and others in her circle tried diligently to make this man "remember" where to find the plates. His wife was not having any of this and Julie told him that this wife was of the dark and would be taken out by God if she didn't get on board. Julie convinced this man to buy 75,000 dollars worth of guns and ammo as he would be the captain of an army to fight incoming troops. Subsequently, he has lost his business and almost his marriage. So when people say no harm has been done, they are wrong."

There are other testimonies of this nature. In light of the recent excommunication of Energy Healer, Julie Rowe, we received a Private Message from someone sharing this personal experience.

The Administrators of this Page support Julie Rowe's Priesthood leaders who made a very difficult yet wise decision to excommunicate Julie so she could no longer use the name of the Church to harm the innocent.

There is safety in staying close to the those who hold Priesthood Keys and not listening to those who have not been called, presented before the church, or set apart.

A victim of Julie Rowe's deception writes:

"Asking what kind of harm Julie Rowe has caused is like saying what kind of harm did Jim Jones, Marshall Applewhite & Bonnie Lu Nettles, and Joseph Di Mambor cause. Their followers had their agency to choose to follow them. It [is] religious freedom.

I'm not here to tear someone down, my purpose in writing this post is to make people aware of the risk associated with following a[n] on-the-fringe self-declared prophet. My wife is a die-hard Julie Rowe follower. Here's a list of the influence Julie Rowe has had on my family:

1) She told my wife that it was okay for us to both quit our jobs and liquidate our retirement because the end was going to happen within 9 months. This was 5 years ago. I didn't agree with my wife on this request, so my wife threatened to divorce me. In an effort to save my marriage I liquidated my 401K a few years ago...right before the strongest stock market surge we've seen in decades. I've r[u]n retirement simulation calculations and figure I've lost (conservatively speaking) a half a million over the life of my retirement fund. Not to mention being forced to move and leave my fantastic job so we could be closer to the tent city. Five years later I've had a couple complicated career pivots, with [a] lower salary and less fulfillment, and have been unemployed twice--which never helps a marriage.

2) Julie Rowe has predicted a couple earthquakes. My wife was so convinced that she texted every close friend and relative that the big one was going to happen. She took all of the pictures off our walls, tied our cupboards closed, put all of the vases and fragile knick-knacks on the floor, put shoes and a flashlight next to each of my children bed and coached them what to do when the big earthquake hits. Can you imagine the anxiety and fear this caused in dozens of people's lives. Who knows the kind of irreversible damage it caused my kids.

3) Julie Rowe told my wife they were sisters in another estate, and that they were murdered together. That's why they are kindred spirits. Julie Rowe also told my wife that she was Joan of Arc, among other famous wom[e]n in her other lives in the past. This has wreaked havoc in my family because my wife believes she was family with Julie Rowe, and so she places her at an equal priority as my kids and I. From these multiple estate talks, my wife has elevated Julie Rowe to Wonder Woman status. She believes she is a warrior goddess. Let's not forget that Julie Rowe removed her infamous podcast where she stated she was married to Eric Smith in a previous estate. How screwed up is this?! Can you imagine if I told my wife that the woman I travel with all over the country was my wife in a previous life? You can hear the sexual tension they experience on every podcast. It's disgusting!

4) Julie Rowe claims to have visions, dreams, and experiences meeting immortal beings. For example, she claimed to meet Cain at the Salt Lake City airport, and that Cain tried to poison her. Despite trying to kill Julie Rowe, Cain had enough gentlemanly manners to wait outside of the women's restroom while Julie Rowe could compose herself. Shortly after this podcast aired, I was with my family at the movie theater. We were sitting near the front of the theater. An average middle-aged man sat in front of us. I went to get popcorn and my wife followed me out and said the man sitting in front of her is pure evil and he is from a different dimension, and he came to torment or even hurt her. She begged me to take my family and sit in the back of the theater. I wasn't about to move all of my kids and all of their stuff in the middle of a movie. So she went sat in the back while I stayed up front with my kids. I watched the immortal being from a different dimension in front of me. He did seem to enjoy sipping his Coke. Perhaps I would feel the same way if I traveled from a different dimension. I'll bet he was thirsty. My wife now has [the] paranoia that everyone is out to torment her. She hears things, sees things, and has dreams and visions, just like her previous estate sister, Julie Rowe. You are probably asking, why would my wife believe any of this is happening to her? It is because she has unwavering trust in Julie Rowe, and when she tells Julie Rowe about all of these experiences, Julie Rowe confirms that they are real and true. When she talks with Julie Rowe, it's like adding fuel to the fire.

5) Julie Rowe has done these energy healing seminars across the country. Well, my wife has been to two of them. My brother died unexpectedly, and the day we all found out and were in mourning, and when we all needed to support each other, my wife decided to leave our family and drive four hours to go to Julie Rowe's energy class, because she didn't want to offend Julie Rowe by missing it (even though she just went two months before). I could hardly function, and my kids were distraught, but mom decided she needed to go get her Julie Rowe fix. I heard about the Julie Rowe seminar. Everyone has to turn their phones in (because dark spirits travel through portals through electronic devices--which is much more convincing than saying we don't want anyone to record the session). At the beginning of the session, everyone in the class raise[s] their right arm to the square and they all repeat a chant. My wife has spent a lot of money on these sessions, and now she wants to become an Energy Healer. She has done energy healing on several friends and family members. She "worked" on my brother's wife once for about an hour. That session was so traumatizing for my brother's wife, she ended up leaving the church. Which has been very difficult on my brother and his little family? My wife also "worked" on my niece, and it took months for my sister and her husband to deprogram the damage caused during that session. I haven't seen anything good come from any of this. It just takes my wife away from our family, and it is quite demanding on me to work 55 hours a week, and then complete most of the housework, yard work, meals, homework, putting kids to bed, so my wife can devote all of her time "healing" the afflicted. The energy work gives her a high for a day or two, but then she crashes and crashes hard. She'll stay in bed for several hours, usually on her phone, listening to podcasts or reading blogs to get that high again. This is extremely addicting. I've never seen anything like it. It's as addicting as heroin.

6) Because Julie Rowe has validated and encouraged my wife and all of her dreams, my wife can't sleep enough, because she believes that is how God communicates to her. She is constantly trying to go to sleep. Some days she sleeps 10-12 hours. I don't think I've ever seen my wife help my kids with their homework. My kids are late to school almost every day because she doesn't want to wake up and take them. I've started taking them to school, which makes me late for work. I'd wake up earlier, but I'm up late helping with homework, doing dishes, doing laundry, cleaning the house.

7) Julie Rowe has told my wife that God called her as a "prophet" with a small "p". Not the capital "P" prophet, but the smaller "p". I don't even know what that means, but she obviously wants to elevate herself to attract as many followers as possible. My wife believes everything that comes out of her mouth to be prophetic--which is dangerous. I have a small fear that my wife will do anything Julie Rowe requests. I've heard of mentally ill mothers harming themselves or their children. If Julie Rowe asked my wife to make the ultimate sacrifice--I can't say for sure that she wouldn't do something drastic. I try not to even think about it, but it truly gives me pause.

8) Julie Rowe encouraged my wife to buy a tent. We ended up spending $2,000 on a canvas tent...this was while I was unemployed. My wife has also spen[t] thousands on food storage and every type of camping equipment. I don't mind being prepared, but now my wife wants to sell our house to use the equity to purchase more supplies and food. I told her I'm not going to sell my house. So now she is threatening me with divorce. She believes if she divorces me, we will split the equity in half, and then she will have plenty of money to pay off her debt and buy more food and supplies. Julie Rowe told her that she cannot enter the tent city if she has any debt. My wife has so much anxiety over her debt that it is crippling. She is working her guts out, and hardly ever spends any time with our kids because she is so consumed with getting out of debt. We have given a lot of money to Julie Rowe's foundation through donations and fees for energy healing, yet Julie Rowe isn't even a licensed practitioner, and she lives in a home on a property that was all donated to her. How is any of this legal? It's sounding more and more like a satanic cult leader, isn't it?

This is just the tip of the iceberg. There is so much more I could say. My biggest word of advice for anyone that is curious about Julie Rowe. Julie Rowe is a dangerous cult leader that has developed a counterfeit gospel that is a plague spreading through many many families. I have never seen anything cause more harm, and do more damage to a family than the teachings and influence of Julie Rowe. I know of a surety that Julie Rowe is false, is a fraud, is counterfeit, and is led by the adversary. "By their fruits, ye shall know them." I encourage everyone to stand up to this apostasy and fight it like a plague. I'm not saying this because I have the antidote, I'm saying this because I've seen first-hand the damage it has caused me and my entire family. I don't know where else to turn. I welcome any type of support or encouragement. I just don't know what to do"

I’m just wondering your thoughts. I pray her and all those that are involved in all negative light on the church and if the Lord is cleaning his church. It would be wise for all of us who uplifted by these testimony to follow the Counsel of the church in this matters.