Showing posts with label letter to Ben. Show all posts
Showing posts with label letter to Ben. Show all posts

Monday, June 29, 2020

Sunday, June 28th, 2020

Suva, Fiji
91st operating temple
Dedicated: 18 June 2000
By: Gordon B. Hinckley

Jesus Christ, Lamb of God
Revelation 17:14
These shall make war with the Lamb, and the Lamb shall overcome them: for he is Lord of lords, and King of kings: and they that are with him are called, and chosen, and faithful.
Book of Mormon/"Come Follow Me"
Met with our "Come Follow Me" Sunday group and reviewed the lesson: Alma 17-22 "I Will Make an Instrument of Thee"
April General Conference
"Sharing the Message of the Restoration and the Resurrection"
Elder D. Todd Christofferson
"This story (see talk) is but one of thousands, hundreds of thousands, that speak of the time, treasure, and lives sacrificed over the last 200 years to share the message of the Restoration. Our aspiration to reach every nation, kindred, tongue, and people is undiminished today, as witnessed by the tens of thousands of young men, women, and couples currently serving under full-time mission calls; by Church members generally, who echo Philip's invitation to come and see; and by the millions of dollars spent annually to sustain this effort across the world."



Except for the howling wind, this was a beautiful Sabbath day. We had our friends over at 10:30 for the Sacrament and "Come Follow Me." The Goodman's are not here today because they have family visiting. Owen and Donna Peeler, and Chuck and Kathy Crane were our guests. This is how our program went:
Opening Song: "How Firm a Foundation"
Prayer: Kathy Crane
Sacrament Hymn: 
"As Now We Take the Sacrament"
Chuck Crane blessed the bread
Owen Peeler bless the water
James prepared and passed
"Come Follow Me"
We watched the video:
"Ammon serves and blesses King Lamoni"
James led our scripture study
We read from the scriptures not following the outline in the
"Come Follow Me" manual
Closing Prayer:
James

The Crane's loved the strawberry pretzel dessert, especially Kathy. She said it is a dessert that their family makes for Christmas. I apologized for the pretzels not being crushed enough and she said they were fine. Kathy was very pleasant today and she really is a good friend. I bought 18 eggs from her. She said something about the membrane around the egg that keeps the egg fresh. She said for this reason, not wanting to break the membrance, she had not washed the eggs. Later when I told James he was upset. He said that was unsanitary. I told him he could wash the eggs if he wanted to.

After lunch James and his partner Dave Westbrook went to the Woods' to give them the sacrament. James was so happy to do this. He has wanted to for a long time but Sean Hunsaker has been doing it. Sean told them they should have their ministering brothers bring them the sacrament and they agreed. Although Chuck is not a member he is such a nice guy. Pam is wonderful. She watches "The Chosen" and James told her that I watch it too.

We FaceTimed with Jared, Kacey, Charlie and Tanner this afternoon. Jared is not feeling well. He has  pustular soriatic  arthritis. He has a boil like sore on the back of his neck and is pretty miserable. I remember my dad having boils on his neck and I am wondering if he had this type of arthritis. I am so sad that this condition has been passed to both Jared and Darrel. Also, Stacy has lupus which is closely related. 

Charlie's favorite treat is wintergreen Ice Breakers. I wonder if she inherited this love for them from me. They are my favorite mint too. 

Tanner is bored and got on one of Charlie's ride on toys and galloped around the house. Anyway, we so much enjoy our daily visits with our Whitehouse, Texas family. 

At six o'clock we met with Kim, Brian, Sheri, Jared, and Kacey for our weekly Lambson Study Group. Stacy joined us for a short time but wasn't feeling well so she didn't stay. She did watch two of the talks though. Our discussion was on prayer and personal revelation. Kim led the discussion. Jared asked the question how to we picture Heavenly Father when we pray. We all liked that Kacey pictures the Savior beside her when she prays. Jared told a story about going to "EFY" and attending a class where prayer was discussed and a song by Hilary Weeks called "He Hears Me." He said he prayed to know if Heavenly Father was real and received an answer. He also said that expressing gratitude helps us see how the Lord is in the details of our lives. Brian shared that his favorite quote from all of the talks we read was in Sister Cordon's talk. The quote was by President Nelson: 
"Understand that in the absence of experiences with God, one can doubt the existence of God. So, put yourself in a position to being having experiences with Him. Humble yourself. Pray to have eyes to see God's hand in your life and in the world around you. Ask Him to tell you if He is really there - if He knows you, Ask Him how He feels about you. And then listen." I think this is my favorite quote too.

This evening James and I both wrote letters to Ben. He is such a bright spot in our family right now.

I watched an episode of "The Chosen" while waiting for James to finish his letter. This was the episode where Peter meets the Savior and the Savior fills his nets with fish. When Peter asks what he can do for Him, the Savior says, "Follow Me."

I also listened to a discussion on Book of Mormon Central about next week's "Come Follow Me" lesson.

Scarlett makes my day happier!






 On their way to Zion's National Park

Tanner and Charlie









Charlie: The best part of our Sabbath




















Thursday, August 8, 2019

Sunday, August 4th, 2019

Caracas, Venezuela
96th operating temple
Dedicated: 20 Aug 2000
By: Gordon B. Hinckley

Jesus Christ, Foreordained
John 16:5
But now I go my way to him that sent me; and none of you asketh me, Whither goest thou?
Book of Mormon
Alma 44:16-45:14
New Testament "A Minister and a Witness"
Review Acts 22-28


General Conference
Missionary Work: Sharing What Is in Your Heart
Elder Dieter F. Uchtdorf
"These five suggestions; 1) Draw close to God, 2)Fill your heart with love for others, 3) Strive to walk the path of discipleship, 4) Share what is in your heart, 5) Trust the Lord to work His miracles,
will help you to do what disciples of Jesus Christ have done since ancient times. His gospel and His Church are an important part of your life and of who you are and what you do. Therefore, invite others to come and see and come and help, and God will do His saving work, and they will come and stay."

I read an article from the August Ensign this morning by Sister Bingham entitled, "Catch the Vision, Share the Vision"!
Sister Bingham talks about our need for spiritual vision. She says: "Just as physical vision is important in this life, spiritual vision is critical in our quest for eternal life. Proverbs 29:18 tells us, 'Where there is no vision, the people perish.' The truth is, we all need help learning to see clearly with our spiritual eyes."

I wish I could share this truth with all of my children and grand children. If we don't have a clear vision of why we are here and where we want to go, we will perish spiritually. 

During our fast and testimony meeting Sister Camrie B. bore her testimony. Camrie is in her late twenties and is a single mom to three small children, the oldest is 8. Her husband was unfaithful to her while she was pregnant and she has been able to forgive him through the power of Jesus Christ's Atonement. Her testimony is powerful and sweet. 

Sunday School today was taught by Brother Applegate. He did a great job, he was both dynamic and engaging!  I sat by Tamara, his wife and she said she wish that this was his calling because he loves preparing and studying for the lessons so much.

After church we broke our fast with steak, mashed potatoes and rolls that Sheri left. Thanks for providing us with our Sabbath day feast Sheri!

This evening James wrote a letter to Ben while I tried to do some catchup on my blog. We also read from President Nelson's biography.





 Rowan's face is so funny!




 I love the Sunday photos!

 Clouds on our way home from church.
Clouds mean rain, right?