OUR FAMILY: New Zealand temple

Showing posts with label New Zealand temple. Show all posts

Tuesday, May 14, 2019

Saturday, May 11th, 2019

Hamilton, New Zealand

11th operating temple

Dedicated: 20-22 Apr 1958

By: David O. McKay

Jesus Christ, Divine Sonship

Hebrews 5:8

Though he were a Son, yet learned he obedience by the things which he suffered;

Book of Mormon

Mosiah 27:18-37

New Testament "Come Follow Me"

John 11

General Conference

Hearing His Voice

David P. Homer

"We live in a world with many voices seeking our attention. With all the breaking news, tweets, blogs, podcasts, and compelling advice from Alexa, Siri, and others, we can find it difficult to know which voices to trust. Sometimes we crowdsource guidance in our lives, thinking the majority will provide the best source of truth. Other times we 'halt...between two opinions,' choosing to be 'neither cold nor hot.' Still other times we follow what is convenient, focus on a single voice or issue to guide us, or rely exclusively upon our own ability to think."

It was a beautiful morning for our trip to the temple as we read scriptures and listened to conference talks.

The Reidhead's were in charge of our preparation meeting. President Reidhead sent the sisters downstairs and then upstairs again. It was a little confusing.

We are getting new co-ordinators. The Reidhead's thanked Sister Cochran, Sister Humphries, Brother Coltrin, and Brother McHood for their service as co-ordinators. Brother and Sister Elmer will be our new co-ordinators. They are from Eagar.

I had a new assignment today, something I have never done before.

I was the assistant veil director for all three sessions during our shift. Sister Reidhead from Heber is the veil director. She is one of the sisters that I feel closest to so it was fun to work with her.

The 9:30 veil experience went great. The next one was to be at 11. From 10:30 - 11 I was assigned to help in the baptistry. I left right at 11 but did not hear the bell signalling it was time for veil workers to go to the veil. I went upstairs and sat in the common area waiting for the bell. I wasn't there very long when Sister Reidhead came in and said that I had missed the veil. I couldn't believe it and felt very embarrassed. She said there were not very many patrons so it went quickly. I guess I shouldn't have listened more carefully from the baptistry.

Sister Reidhead whose name is Elwanda, went to school with Dennis and Harold, and so did her husband Dean. She rode the bus from Heber with my sister-in-law Vickie. I love meeting people from high school who know my family or friends.

James was the 2nd follower in a session today. Something he hasn't done for a long time. He was glad to do it.

On the way home from the temple we stopped at Sonic for some lunch. I got a burger and James a crispy chicken sandwich.

My knee was bothering me most of the way home. We were supposed to go to a baptism at 3 pm but I was just not up for it so James went by himself. The baptism was for two of the 8 year old girls in our ward, Cathryn and Khloe.

Cathryn and her dad,

Bishop Miller

Khloe and her "Paka" Hunsaker

Khloe with her mom and two brothers,

Parker and Brooks

I told James to bring me some refreshments. When he got home he said there were no refreshments and there were over 100 people in attendance.

I was down for the count the rest of the evening with my right knee swollen and elevated on the recliner.

James watched the new Hallmark movie with me:

This Texas movie was actually filmed

in Canada

Waiting to see Tanner

At first I'm a little shy with Tanner

Proud of Jace and Ty from Vernon

Good job Gracie!
Gracie is in James's Primary class
She's the one with the light green pillow

Our friends who have kindergartners:

Wednesday, August 16, 2017

Tuesday, August 8th, 2017

Hamilton, New Zealand

11th operating temple

Dedicated: 20-22 April 1958

By: David O. McKay

Alma 47:1-19

How can the interaction between Amalickiah and Lehonti be symbolic of our interaction with temptations?

*C.S. Lewis wrote, "The safest road to hell is a gradual one." Like Amalickiah, Satan is subtle and will try to gradually poison those who come, even a little way, to meet him. A spiritual fall generally does not happen in one fell swoop but by degrees. It's poison destroying little by little. Nephi said, "He leadeth them by the neck with a flaxen cord, until he bindeth them with his strong cords forever...thus the devil cheateth their souls, and leadeth them away carefully down to hell." (2 Nephi 26:22; 28:21). And, Elder Carlos E. Asay wrote, "Those who become followers of the evil one do not generally reach their captive state with one misdeed; they lose their freedom one sin at a time - one error after another - until almost all is lost. Flaxen cords are transformed into awful chains of steel as they allow themselves to follow the downward course. Each easy step away from the line of goodness and truth makes it more and more difficult to recover."

DC 109:41-60

Which verses spoke to me today?

43 O Lord, we delight not in the destruction of our fellow men, their souls are precious before thee;

44 But thy word must be fulfilled. Help thy servants to say, with thy grace assisting them: Thy will be done, O Lord, and not ours.

46 Therefore, O Lord, deliver thy people from the calamity of the wicked; enable thy servants to seal up the law, and bind up the testimony, that they may be prepared against the day of burning.

47 We ask thee, Holy Father, to remember those who have been driven by the inhabitants of Jackson county, Missouri, from the lands of their inheritance, and break off, O Lord, this yoke of affliction that has been put upon them.

49 O Lord, how long wilt thou suffer this people to bear this affliction, and the cries of their innocent ones to ascend up in thine ears, and their blood come up in testimony before thee, and not make a display of thy testimony in their behalf?

53 But inasmuch as they will repent, thou art gracious and merciful, and wilt turn away thy wrath when thou lookest upon the face of thine Anointed.

54 Have mercy, O Lord, upon all the nations of the earth; have mercy upon the rulers of our land; may those principles, which were so honorably and nobly defended, namely, the Constitution of our land, by our fathers, be established forever.

55 Remember the kings, the princes, the nobles, and the great ones of the earth, and all people, and the churches, all the poor, the needy, and afflicted ones of the earth;

56 That their hearts may be softened when thy servants shall go out from thy house, O Jehovah, to bear testimony of thy name; that their prejudices may give way before the truth, and thy people may obtain favor in the sight of all;

58 That from among all these, thy servants, the sons of Jacob, may gather out the righteous to build a holy city to thy name, as thou hast commanded them.

General Conference

Confide in God Unwaveringly

Elder Ulisses Soares

"If we are not rooted by steadfast trust in God and the desire to serve Him, the painful experiences of mortality can lead us to feel as though we are burdened by a heavy yoke; and we can lose the motivation to live the gospel fully. Without faith, we will end up losing the capacity to appreciate those designs of our God regarding the things that will happen later in our life. (See DC 58:3)

Brighter and Brighter Until the Perfect Day

Elder Mark A. Bragg

" We are children of God. Receiving light, continuing in God, and receiving more light are what we are created to do. From the very beginning, we followed the light; we followed our Heavenly Father and His plan. Seeking the light is in our spiritual DNA.

Happy 8th Birthday Molly!

3 years ago

This year

Love that smile!

The hazards of riding the Razr

BFF

Things I read today from Elder Soares's conference talk on faith:

1.) Trust that God will provide for our needs.

2.) Turn to the Lord with full purpose of heart and He will deliver you out of bondage.

3.) God blesses us according to our faith.

4.) If we are steadfast in our faith, the Lord will increase our capacity to raise ourselves above the challenges of life.

Things I learned from reading Juliann Hough's post on Instagram:

"There s a battle of two wolves inside us, the one that wins is the one you feed."

Today is also Darrel and Trina's 14th wedding anniversary. I can honestly say they are two of my favorite people in the entire world!

Darrel says this is the last good picture of him.

I don't think so Darrel.

James finished the greenhouse today. I am praying that the wind doesn't blow it over.

I mentioned I wanted tacos for lunch so James took me to Aliberto's when I know he would much rather go to Lacasita.

After shopping I came home and took a nap and then worked on my blog. I also made a bath of Doubletree "knock off" cookies.

This evening we watched one of our favorite Hallmark movies, "Uncommon Grace."

Random Photos

Arizona Highways

The Westbrook's

A couple with true grit, as their daughter

says. They raised 9 children.

They are two of my favorite people in Vernon.

Sad news.

If I had a pet...

German castle.

Tuesday, April 11, 2017

Saturday, April 8, 2017

Hamilton, New Zealand

11th operating temple

Mosiah 3:11-27

King Benjamin testifies tat through the Atonement of Jesus Christ, we can put off the natural man and become saints.

*Read verses 11-13, 16 and look for the answers to these questions. How does the Atonement apply:

1. To those who die without a knowledge of the gospel?

2. To those who rebel against God and deliberately sin?

3. To children who die before they reach the age of accountability?

Dallin H. Oaks: "These teachings that the resurrection and cleansing power of the Atonement is for all contradict the assertion that the grace of God saves only a chosen few. His grace is for all. These teachings of the Book of Mormon expand our vision and enlarge our understanding of the all-encompassing love of God and the universal effect of His Atonement for all men everywhere."

*Read Mosiah 3:19.

1. How did the angel describe a natural man's relationship with God?

2. According to this verse, how can we put off the natural man?

A natural man is "a person who chooses to be influenced by the passions, desires, appetites, and senses of the flesh rather than by the prompting of the Holy Spirit. Such a person can comprehend physical things but not spiritual. All people are carnal, or mortal, because of the fall of Adam and Eve. Each person must be born again through the Atonement of Jesus Christ."

3. Through the Atonement of Jesus Christ, a person does more than just stop being a "natural man." He or she "becometh a saint."

In addition to saving us from our sins, the Savior changes us into better people than we could ever be on our own. He helps us become more like Him.

One last quote, this one from David A. Bednar:

"Both clean hands and a pure heart are required to ascend into the hill of the Lord and to stand in His holy place. Let me suggest that hands are made clean through the process of putting off the natural man and by overcoming sin and the evil influences in our lives through the Savior's Atonement. Hearts are purified as we receive His strengthening power to do good and become better. All of our worthy desires and good works, as necessary as they are can never produce clean hands and a pure heart. It is the Atonement of Jesus Christ that provides both a cleansing and redeeming power that helps us to overcome sin and a sanctifying and strengthening power that helps us to become better than we ever could by relying only upon our own strength. The infinite Atonement is for both the sinner and for the saint in each of us."

Helaman 5 - My Wow! Chapter

Nephi and Lehi devote themselves to preaching - Their names invite them to pattern their lives after their forebears - Christ redeems those who repent - Nephi and Lehi make many converts and are imprisoned, and fire encircles them - A cloud of darkness overshadows three hundred people - The earth shakes, and a voice commands men to repent - Nephi and Lehi converse with angels, and the multitude is encircled by fire. About 30 B.C.

DC 53:1-7
Revelation given through Joseph Smith the Prophet to Algernon Sidney Gilbert, at Kirtland, Ohio, June 8, 1831. At Sidney Gilbert's request, the Prophet inquired of the Lord as to Brother Gilbert's work and appointment in the Church.
*What witness have I received that the Lord truly does hear my prayers?
-Our car was fixed when we were in San Antonio and we made it home when we were totally out of gas the last 20 miles of our trip home.
General Conference

Our Good Shepherd

Elder Dale G. Renlund

"Jesus Christ, our Good Shepherd, finds joy in seeing His

diseased sheep progress toward healing."

Today I learned about the conditions that will exist at the time of Christ's Second Coming. Some good, some bad, depending on what side of the fence you are standing regarding being a follower of Jesus Christ.

Today James and I slept in until after 7:30. Brian made us a delicious brunch: eggs with bellpeppers, tomatoes, potatoes, sausage and bacon. Thank you Brian! I managed to do my scripture study today but I haven't worked on my blog since Thursday. I said I was not going to get behind again. I will catch up after my talk tomorrow.

Around 3 p.m. James and I went to town to get some groceries. We finished our book, "A Fine Gentlemen," and started this one:

One of my favorite authors of

Proper Romance novels

James ask me to fix green chili pork stew since Jared is coming tonight. I gave James a couple of choices and this was number one. I thought Kim and Brian would like it too but they are on a gluten-free diet. It was soooo windy today. When we returned from town Kim and Brian were gone on a Razr ride. They turned around before Christmas Tree Trail because of snow and mud. I got a text from Jared around four saying he was leaving El Paso. That means he should be here around ten.

The pork stew took awhile to make. James and Brian grilled steaks for dinner and Kim roasted some broccoli and cauliflower. The pork stew will be for tomorrow after church. True to what I said, Jared got here around ten. He visited with Brian and Kim and I went in the bedroom to work on my talk until around 11:30. James went to bed.

Fun Photos: