Suva, Fiji
91st operating temple
Dedicated: 18 June 2000
By: Gordon B. Hinckley
Jesus Christ, Prophecies about
Psalms 34:20
He keepeth all his bones: not one of them is broken.
Book of Mormon
Alma 8:18-9:6
D&C
Review 58-59
"Come Follow Me"
Review "Anxiously Engaged in a Good Cause"
AprGenCon
"The Principles of My Gospel"
Elder David A. Bednar
Of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles
The first three Articles of Faith identify fundamental aspects of the doctrine of the restored gospel of Jesus Christ: the nature of the Godhead in the first article of faith, the effects of the Fall of Adam and Eve in the second article of faith, and the blessings made possible through the Atonement of Jesus Christ in the third article of faith. And the fourth article of faith sets forth the first principles - the guidelines of exercising faith in Jesus Christ and repenting - and the first priesthood ordinances that enable the Atonement of Jesus Christ to be efficacious in our lives.
P9
We declare in words of solemnity that His priesthood and His Church have been restored upon the earth - "built upon the foundation of . . . apostles and prophets, Jesus Christ himself being the chief corner stone" (Ephesians 2:20).
Inklings
"Essential Conversions"
Sister Joy D. Jones
&
Mark 8
Luke 22:31-32 & 66-71
This morning as I was getting ready for church I was listening to Elder Bednar's conference talk, "The Principles of My Gospel." I have already listened to this talk two times but I did not remember that he mentioned the principle of "non-distraction." He mentioned a talk that Dallin H. Oaks gave to the priesthood in 1998 where he mentioned this principle. President Oaks was referring to the Aaronic priesthood as they prepare, bless, and pass the sacrament and how they should not distract from the ordinance. I just thought it was funny that I had not remembered hearing this principle before and now I have heard it from priesthood leaders two days in a row. I would not have considered it a principle of the gospel until now.
Elder Grapp and Brother Wright from the stake were our two priesthood leaders on the stand today. The Hunsakers and the Goodmans are out of town.
Our two new elders here in Vernon spoke today. Elder Zin who is from Utah, spoke on Elder Uchtdorf's talk, "God Among Us." The main principle of this talk is that God is among us, and is personally involved in our lives and actively guiding His children. Elder Zin told about as a youth preparing for a 50 mile hike. He and his dad went out one Saturday to hike. They thought the hike they chose was 12 miles long but it turned out to be 25. Elder Zin told how difficult it was for him to finish this hike and how several times he was ready to give up. His dad encouraged him and he was able to finish. When he had time to reflect on the experience he said he felt as if the Lord was personally involved in this experience with him.
Elder Uchtdorf's shares his experiences with his family living in Europe after World War 2. He said often he would think, "Is there any hope left in the world?"
He thought of the missionaries who taught his family the gospel and brought hope with them. Their message was that God lived and cared about us, even in these hours of turmoil, confusion, and chaos. That He actually appeared in our time to restore truth and light, His gospel and His Church. That He speaks to prophets again; that God is among is, and is personally involved in our lives and actively guiding His children.
Elder Bebe (Prounced baby) is from Canada. He spoke on Sister Jones's talk, "Essential Conversations." Sister Jones has been serving as the General Primary President for the past five years. She was released today. She says: "We cannot wait for conversion to simply happen to our children. Accidental conversion is not a principle of the gospel of Jesus Christ."
I love this talk so much. Sister Jones has given at least two talks that have really touched me. This is one of them. I am going to miss her.
Here are some quotes from her talk that I especially love:
"There is a uniquely special time in children's lives when they are protected from Satan's influence. It is a time when they are innocent and sin free. It is a sacred time for parent and child. Children are to be taught, by word and example, before and after they have "arrived unto the years of accountability before God."
"We cannot wait for conversion to simply happen to our children. Accidental conversion is not a principle of the gospel of Jesus Christ. Becoming like our Savior will not happen randomly. Being intentional in loving, teaching, and testifying can help children begin at a young age to feel the influence of the Holy Ghost. The Holy Ghost is essential to our children's testimony of and conversion to Jesus Christ; we desire them to "always remember him, that they may have his Spirit to be with them."
I might end up quoting the entire talk. I only wish I had had this talk when my children were younger and then taught it to my children.
"Consider the value of family conversations about the gospel of Jesus Christ, essential conversations, that can invite the Spirit. When we have such conversations with our children, we help them create a foundation, "which is a sure foundation, a foundation whereon if they build they cannot fall." When we strengthen a child, we strengthen the family."
"These vital discussions can lead children to:
1. Understand the doctrine of repentance.
2. Have faith in Christ, the Son of the living God.
3. choose baptism and the gift of the Holy Ghost when eight years old.
4. And pray and "walk uprightly before the Lord."
"The Savior urged, "Therefore I give unto you a commandment, to teach these things freely unto your children." And what did He want us to teach so freely?
1. The Fall of Adam
2. The Atonement of Jesus Christ
3. The importance of being born again
"We can have fun helping our children build spiritual resilience at any age. It doesn't have to be complicated or time intensive. Simple, caring conversations can lead children to know not only what they believe, but most important, why the believe it. Caring conversations, happening naturally and consistently, can lead to better understanding and answers. Let's not allow the convenience of electronic devices to keep us from teaching and listening to our children and looking into their eyes."
I could add more but I'm going to stop here. An amazing talk that every parent and grandparent should read!
Brother Wright took up the last few minutes by bearing his testimony of the Savior and His Gospel. It was heartfelt and several times he was near tears. I felt the Spirit so strongly when he was speaking.
It was a wonderful meeting.
The second hour we had Brother and Sister David Merrill from the stake speak to us on the SRS program. They are the stake facilitators. At the end of the class James decided he would like to sign up for the personal finance class. I have been trying for awhile to get him to do this so I was pleased.
Catherine H. parked our car in our garage after church. She and her daughter Kerri are going to Oklahoma and will be gone over a week. She is worried about rats getting up inside her car and chewing on wires if she leaves it outside. She and Kerri do not have a garage. I told her she was welcome to park it in our garage. She was thrilled and said I was the best ministering sister ever! I love Catherine. For being 78 years old she has a lot of spunk and life left in her.
James and I left for our timeshare in Scottsdale at 4:48. James left the key to the front door under the front door mat. Stacy is coming to stay Wednesday night on her way to pick up Joshua who is camping with the youth in their ward at Nutrioso. She is bringing him back so he can stay with Rowan, Evan, and Max at the timeshare with us on Thursday, Friday, and Saturday.
We got into a huge traffic jam right after leaving Payson. The traffic was bumper to bumper as far as you could see. I guess everyone was coming home from the mountains on this holiday weekend. This has never happened to us before. It slowed us down about an hour. We arrived at Sheraton Desert Oasis at 9:00. James went in and checked us in. I was grateful that they remembered I wanted a ground floor room. We are on the north side, rooms 1113 and 1114. James unloaded the car and I put things away. I brought 6 Christmas throws I had leftover from Christmas. James wanted to know why I was bringing blankets to a place that will be over 100 degrees. I told him it would not be 100 degrees inside. I told him he would thank me when I set the thermostat on 68 degrees.
After getting everything put away we both sat down at our computers and did some indexing. We ended up going to bed at 11:00. We love the bed and the pillows. So comfy!
He's serving as a mission president
in Chicago.
