Sunday, July 12th, 2020

Guadalajara, Mexico

105th operating temple

Dedicated: 29 Apr 2001

By: Gordon B. Hinckley

Jesus Christ, Lamb of God

 DC 76:85

These are they who shall not be redeemed from the devil until the last resurrection, until the Lord, even Christ the Lamb, shall have finished his work.

Book of Mormon/"Come Follow Me"

"Come Follow Me" lesson at the Peeler's

April General Conference

"The Power of the Book of Mormon in Conversion"

Elder Benjamin M.Z. Tai

Elder David A. Bednar taught: "Knowing that the gospel is true is the essence of a testimony. Consistently being true to the gospel is the essence of conversion. Conversion requires us to be "doers of the word, and not hearers only. The Lord's action plan for us - the doctrine of Christ - is taught most clearly in the Book of Mormon.

Inklings
Strengthen, Beautify, Nourish
Inklings Institute with Emily

Lambson Study Group
 Discussion on Responsibility 
with Jared, Kacey, Kim, Brian
Sheri and Stacy

James studied the "Come Follow Me" lesson, listening to Book of Mormon Central "Come Follow Me" Insights while I worked on my blog. I already listened to Book of Mormon Central.

The Crane's were scheduled for our "Come Follow Me" group but they have family here so we met at the Peeler's again this week. James and I picked up Pierce on the way. Barbara isn't coming because she is still recovering from shoulder surgery. She had a rough night and was asleep when we picked up Pierce. 

After the opening song, prayer, sacrament song, and blessing and passing of the sacrament Owen started the discussion on Alma 30-31. He said he wanted each of us to share a spiritually defining moment in our lives and he would share first. He told about believing in the gospel since he was six although his family was not active. When he was 14 he was working in a hardware store and wanted to know for sure if God was real. He knelt down and said a prayer asking Heavenly Father if He was real. He felt something undeniable and knew that his prayer had been answered. He has never forgotten this experience.

Pierce said he went through a divorce and couldn't understand why because he had tried everything he knew how to make his marriage work. He prayed for peace and felt the comfort of the Spirit like he had never felt before. 

James said when he was 12 years old he was at a meeting where the song "I Stand All Amazed" was sung. This was a spiritual awakening for him.

 Donna shared how her dad would take her to church every week but neither of her parents ever went with her. Through attending her church and then later when she joined our church she has felt the whisperings of the Spirit. 

I told about the time I was preparing to teach a Spiritual Living lesson about the Holy Ghost and could not remember feeling the Holy Ghost in my life. I kneeled down to pray and the most power was feeling came over me and I knew it was the Spirit.

This afternoon in our conversation with  Jared and Kacey they said Summer was sick and had gone down to be tested for Covid-19. Her boyfriend has it but Summer tested negative. There are lots of false negatives so she may still have it. Jared may have to miss two weeks of work and he and Kacey will probably get it. I hope Charlie doesn't get it though. 

We had our Lambson Study Group discussion at six o'clock. We started out on Skype but we couldn't see Sheri and there was lots of background noise. When we went to Zoom things were much better. We had studied one of Ben's favorite talks, "100 Per Cent Responsible" by Elder Lynn G. Robbins. This talk was given at a BYU Devotional. We also read and discussed talks by Elder Christofferson and President Monson. Stacy joined the discussion today which was nice. 

This evening while James was writing his letter to Ben I listened to Emily on Inklings Institute and started a Lambson Study Group journal and a "Come Follow Me" group journal. I also made some dark chocolate brownies with walnuts. We ate a couple and put the rest in the freezer.

I still remember this day so vividly

Couldn't resist another one

Little Miss Charlie makes our Sabbath!

Sunday, July 5th, 2020

Birmingham, Alabama

98th operating temple

Dedicated: 17 Sept 2000

By: Gordon B. Hinckley

Jesus Christ, Lamb of God

1 Nephi 10:10

And after he had baptized the Messiah with water, he should behold and bear record that he had baptized the Lamb of God, who should take away the sins of the world.

Book of Mormon/"Come Follow Me"

Review Alma 23-29 with study group at the Peeler's

April General Conference

"Spiritually Defining Memories"

Elder Neil L. Andersen

"My friend Clayton Christensen described an experience during a very prayerful reading of the Book of Mormon this way: 'A beautiful, warm, loving Spirit ... surrounded me and permeated my soul, enveloping me in a feeling of love that I had not imagined I could feel and these feelings continued night after night."

I got up this morning and as part of my gospel study I listened to Emily and Rio on the Inklings Institute lesson for the week. This is the line from the Restitution Proclamation for this week: "Pages of this sacred text include an account of the personal ministry of Jesus Christ among people in the Western Hemisphere soon after His Resurrection. We also studied Elder Gong's conference address, "Hosanna and Hallelujah - The Living Jesus Christ: The Heart of Restoration and Easter" We also discussed 3 Nephi 17:7-9 and 11:14-15. It was a great discussion. I learned that Hosanna means "save us" and Hallelujah means "you are saved." We start at the beginning and through truth and knowledge we grow in wisdom. As we continue to practice with persistence, we improve and our confidence grows. "With the passage of time, moral agency and mortal experiences help us become more like our Savior as we labor with Him in His vineyard and follow His covenant path."

Here are some of the comments left on the Instagram Inklings site: 

Someone shared this quote by Mary Magdalene from The Chosen:

"I was one way, now I am completely different, and the thing that happened in between was Him." 

Sue Heugly: "I have found that when I choose to have Jesus Christ in all parts of my life ... I don't drop him off in the morning and pick him back up in the evening. If "He" is to be within me always ... it works better if I include Him in my thoughts all day long ... for those thoughts are a speech before Him. A little Hosanna in the morning and a hallelujah in the evening, with prayers of gratitude in between, would definitely increase my personal connection with my Savior and make it more joyful for Him to find me."

I love hearing other people bear their testimony and express what the Savior means to them. 

We met at the Peeler's today for our "Come Follow Me" discussion. The Goodman's were not there. Barbara is still recovering from her shoulder surgery. As we discussed the missionary labors of the sons of Mosiah among the Lamanites, Brother Peeler shared a story from his mission to New Orleans, Louisiana. The missionaries were struggling to find people to teach. Brother Peeler and his companion met with a preacher from another religion. He gave an eloquent sermon. Afterwards Elder Peeler went up to him and asked who he thought God was. He took him several comments before he finally said, "I don't know." Elder Peeler then proceeded to teach him about the Godhead. Afterwards the preacher made this comment: "I didn't know this was what you guys believed. You are welcome to knock on the doors if anyone in my parish and those doors will be open to you." Brother Peeler said everything changed in the mission. They were able to get inside peoples homes and teach them and many people were baptized. A young missionary sharing a simple testimony made all of the difference.

Donna had made a cake with Coolwhip frosting and peaches on top for us to break our fast with. It was delicious!

We had a short visit with Kacey, Jared and Charlie via Face Time before our Lambson Study Group.

Our discussion this week was on mercy. Emily this morning said that mercy was especially active compassion. At least that is the Greek definition. We had three talks to study this week: "Mercy - the Divine Gift" by President Thomas S. Monson; "The Justice and Mercy of God" by Elder Jeffrey R. Holland based on a talk he gave at BYU called, "Borne On Eagles' Wings"; and "Blessed are the Merciful" by President Gordon B. Hinckley. The talks were great. I loved the story of the southern soldier during the Civil War, Sargeant Kirtland, who carried water to the northern soldiers suffering and wounded in the battlefield. They built a statue of him in Fredericksburg, Virginia. I hope it wasn't desecrated by the protestors. 

This evening James  wrote a letter to Ben and I worked on my blog. It was a good Sabbath day. I listened to five talks and finished my Book of Mormon study guide. I love studying the gospel just about more than anything else.

 The Elmer Girls

 Poor Charlie!

 Love this!

Monday, December 16th, 2019

Halifax, Nova Scotia

64th operating temple

Dedicated: 14 Nov 1999

By: Gordon B. Hinckley

Jesus Christ, Jehovah

DC 38:1

Thus saith the Lord your God, even Jesus Christ, the Great I Am, Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the end, the same which looked upon the wide expanse of eternity, and all the seraphic hosts of heaven, before the world was made;

Book of Mormon

Ether 11:1-23

New Testament

"The Living Christ: The Testimonies of the Apostles"

Oct 2019 General Conference

"Honoring His Name"

Lisa L. Harkness

"The name we were given at birth reflects our individual identity and gives us belonging within our earthly families. However, when we were 'born again' at baptism, our understanding of who we are was enlarged. 'Because of the covenant which ye have made ye shall be called the children of Christ, ... for behold, ... he hath spiritually begotten you; for ye say that your hearts are changed through faith on his name; therefore, ye are born of him.'"

"Beloved Daughters"

Bonnie H. Cordon

"However your young women classes are organized, you young women are vital in building unity. Be a light to those around you. Be the source of love and care you are hoping to receive from others. With a prayer in your heart, continue to reach out and be that force for good. As you do so, your life will be filled with kindness. You will have a better feeling toward others and will begin to see their goodness in return."

I keep getting a network error message when I try to download the Redheaded Hostess materials for this week. I finally texted them and they said it was an internet connection on my end. I changed from the jetpack to the regular internet in the dining room and it worked fine. Darn little jetpack anyway.

Kacey texted to let me know that they got the Christmas packages we sent. Wow! that was fast and much cheaper than UPS. From now on when sending packages it's USPS.

I used the leftover meat from our Christmas party and shredded it and added some salsa and made chicken tacos for lunch. They were quite delicious.

After lunch I read to James and then I read from my Aunt Dimity book. While I was resting James moved the file cabinet out of my closet in order to better reach the furnace that needs fixing. James put the file cabinet downstairs in the years supply/Christmas closet. He pulls the motor out of the furnace and takes it to Ed Miller. Ed is going to go and purchase a replacement for us. 

The 10 Bicentennial First Vision calendars I ordered arrived today. Now I have to decide who I am going to give them to. For sure Ben is getting one. The shirts I ordered for James for Christmas are also here and the Book of Mormon study guide from the Redheaded Hostess and the verse a day Book of Mormon journal from Emily Belle Freeman is also here. I still have a Book of Mormon study guide coming from Emily.

I inventoried books for shipment but I didn't finish. I also made two loaves of banana nut bread, one for the Peeler's and one for the Goodman's. It was still warm when we wrapped it because we were running late for our FHE. 

We had the "Come Follow Me" discussion at the Peeler's this evening. It is the Christmas lesson. After the lesson I gave each family a loaf of bread and a Christmas card and Donna and Barbara a pair of warm socks.

It is cold outside, around 38 degrees but at least there is no wind. We came home and read the letter Elder Trezise sent.

Happy Birthday Ben!

#20

 Ward Christmas Party

 Bryce and Lexy's girls