Cheryl Cowart & Jake Jaccard.
On a Mission for Jesus Christ
and his Church
|
We
are Jake Jaccard and Cheryl Jaccard Cowart, brother and sister, born to godly parents, Don and Arlene (Wolfgram)
Jaccard, and raised in a Christ-centered church. We had one other sibling, Scott, and the five of us, along with
several generations before us, were born in the state of Wisconsin. Before that, our ancestors hailed from the
"old" Germany called Prussia.
We children were taught, through our parents best efforts
to believe in Jesus Christ as our Lord and Savior; the Messiah of the whole earth. We were given a great foundation
of faith and trust in His Holy Word.
But for Jake and I, there always seemed to be many unanswered
questions and doubts in some of the lessons we were taught by this well meaning Christ-based church. Answers to
questions were not forthcoming or we would be told "these are the mysteries of God" and not for us to
know. God blessed us, however, to be seekers of truth, and so the quest began.
It probably would be good to know a
little bit about our own experiences along the pathway of life, so you may understand how we came to discover absolute
truth, not just knowledge cloaked in mystery as a lot of Christian doctrine and dogma has become today. It has
been so since the early era of the Christian Church history, beginning sometime around and after the Roman Emperor
Constantine adopted the fledgling Christian Church as his own, sometime around 400 A.D. The modern day Christian
Churches mostly base their beliefs on the Nicene Creed which came out of the Council of Nicea at that time, which
really was the beginning of the cloak of mystery, regarding the Godhead. It is our purpose here, to uncloak the
mystery to show how it began, and how the Lord has shed new Light on His Eternal Truths once and for all, for mankind.
You need to read our Articles on the subject of the "Great Apostasy" or the "Falling Away",
and the eventual Restoration to get your head around this New Light which now is coming to the Earth in this Time
which we have come to know as the Dispensation of the Fullness of Time (Ephesians 1:10) 1
Cheryl's story:
I married within a year or two of my graduating from high school and proceeded soon after to begin our family.
I became the mother of 3 boys. During the early years, because we were a military family, we moved around quite
a bit. Because of my husband's job within the military this was our routine: 1 year on the west coast then 1 year
on the east coast, followed by 1 year overseas.
After I married, I "drifted away" from organized
religion for a time. Because I was so disappointed in the lack of answers I personally needed to "conform"
to my church's way of thinking. I still believed in my Savior and leaned on my understanding of Him, but I could
not profess a lot of faith in the doctrines of the churches I was familiar with. There just wasn't any satisfying
answers that justified my understanding of who Christ was with the distortions I heard from these different doctrines.
During one of those years when my husband was overseas, I
took my children and moved to Wisconsin to be near my brother, Jake and his wife. It was at this time that he introduced
me to The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints. Finally, after years of unanswered questions and a whole
lot of doubts, there was a church that had the answers I knew had to be out there somewhere. I always knew that
Christ had established His church during His ministry. But now there were so many different churches and each had
their own interpretation of the gospel. I knew that Christ was not a God of confusion so there could only be one
true church and one true doctrine. I knew that there was a "Holy" order to His church, that there would
be "authorized" leaders, chosen by God Himself to conduct the affairs of His church (prophets, apostles,
etc.). I knew that the ordinances of His church (baptism, laying on of hands, marriage, etc) had to be preformed
by His authorized representatives or they couldn't be performed correctly or with His divine approval. I knew that
a loving Father in Heaven would not consign babies to hell if they didn't receive the ordinance of baptism before
dying. I knew that my spirit is eternal and not something that came into existence instantly at birth. But where
did my spirit reside before I came here? Who was my spirit's literal parent? What was my purpose in coming to earth?
What was my destination? Then there was the question about the "trinity". I just couldn't swallow my
God being 3 in 1. Why on earth was Christ praying to himself in the garden? I learned somewhere along the line
that the trinity was decided upon by a group of men who met and wrote the Nicene Creed and the scriptures say nothing
about Heavenly Father, Jesus Christ and the Holy Ghost as being three personages in one being. These were just
some of my questions and the The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints had all the answers. I knew they were
teaching the truth because the Holy Spirit confirmed the truth unto me.
I am so grateful to a loving Father in Heaven and His Son,
Jesus Christ for directing my path throughout my life and leading my brother and then me to Truth Restored. I can
now "sit at the foot of a prophet of God", and hear the instruction He gives to His children in these
latter days. There is no more a sense of confusion. I know my Father and His Son; I know my purpose and who I am.
I am a daughter of God. I am on the road back to Him.
Prayerfully submitted
Cheryl Jaccard Cowart
Jake's Story:
My story is much like Cheryl's in that we both were schooled
in the basic Christian core doctrines but there were things in the Bible that could not be explained by our pastors
and teachers - the excuse in most cases was, "..These are mysteries which God has not yet revealed" which
planted a seed in my mind, that perhaps one day the Lord would reveal these answers. The Apostle Paul often referred
to the hidden mysteries, and Christ alluded to them, by saying, "It is given unto you to know the mysteries
of the Kingdom, but to them, it is not given.2 " and why that was so, caused me to wonder what privilege existed
with some who were given the Mysteries and others were not so privileged.
I reasoned, 'Is not Christ the
common denominator of all mankind - so shouldn't all of the believers have that same privilege which He inferred
was reserved for only a select few?' The only logical answer I could suppose was that there is a class distinction
between Christians, and after much study, I came to understand that this distinction must be because some Christians
are satisfied with what they have been taught and look no further, as opposed to those who seek continually after
Knowledge and Wisdom which only Holiness end Election can grant. The difference in these two class distinctions
was apparent: either you choose to be led by the Holy Ghost or you choose to be led by blind leaders who "tickle
the ear" to get followers 3. This concept is fully doctrinal. Our Lord's promise that if we ask,
it will be given unto us; if we seek earnestly, we will find; and if we knock, it will be opened unto us. So the
answer seems to be that one must be actively engaged in seeking truth or the greater Truths will not be given us.
With Christ, there are no back-seat
believers in His Kingdom. Contrary to most Church teachings, a mere belief in Christ will not save you. The Apostle
James taught that the devils also believe but fear and tremble. 4
This caused me to eventually leave my native Church, seeking
for one that could give me the answers. Truly, the Gospel of Christ is taught plainly in the Book of James. Everyone
should read and study it, but there are other books that offer this same pathway to Gospel Truths, and is the purpose
for why my sister and I put up this Website.
This course was not a fast track one; I was lead many times
down "dark and forbidden" pathways. But along the path were many "markers" that eventually
help me to change my course to the correct one. Such Course Corrections or Markers along my way such as a little
five year old boy in a hospital bed next to mine that asked me to read to him from his "My Turn on Earth and
"Book of Mormon Stories"; high school friends who "had a certain Light" about them; navy friends
who continued the example who were members of the LDS Worship Group aboard ship; and later, an employer who gave
me the "Book of Mormon" and "A Marvelous Work and a Wonder"; and later still, two young men
in white shirts and ties possessing that same Light who knocked at my door; etc.).
All these examples in my life set the
course for me, and later became very important parts of my Testimony, proving to me that God was setting those
Markers in my Pathway.
These markers kept happening over and over in my life. Finally, after years of "bumping into" so many
clues about the LDS Church, I asked for and received the Mormon missionaries into my home. They taught me the precepts
of their faith. It was like a HUGE LIGHT coming on in my head. Soon all those old Mysteries that my native Church
could not answer were being answered, one after another. It took but a few lessons from those Missionaries before
I knew I wanted to be baptized. 5
That was a long time ago now (August 20, 1971). A lot of water
has passed under the "old bridge" of my life, but I feel as Fired Up today about this "New Light",
as I did when I first went into the waters of *Baptism.
I bear you my testimony that if you seek Truth, God will manifest
the truth unto you. He doesn't wish to keep you in the dark, as long as you are seeking to understand and know
His Hidden Mysteries - He will show you the Way to find it. I found it - you can also.
By so doing, you become the Elect of God, and are privileged
then, to receive all the Blessings of Heaven, even Life Everlasting.
Jake Jaccard