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!
