Tuesday, December 4th, 2018

Washington D.C.

16th operating temple

Dedicated: 19-22 Nov 1974

By: Spencer W. Kimball

Jesus Christ, Death of

Acts 2:24

Book of Mormon #1

Ether 3:1-16

* Elder Jeffrey R. Holland has said, in regards to the brother of Jared seeing the spiritual, premortal Jesus Christ: "Perhaps Christ was sying to the brother of Jared, 'Never have I shown myself unto man in this manner, without my volition, driven solely by the faith of the beholder.' As a rule, prophets are invited into the presence of the Lord, are bidden to enter his presence by him and only with his sanction. The brother of Jared, on the other hand, seems to have thrust himself through the veil, not as an unwelcome guest but perhaps technically as an uninvited one. Said Jehovah: 'Never has man come before me with such exceeding faith as thou hast; for were it not so ye could not have seen my finger...Never has man believed in me as thou hast.' Obviously the Lord himself was linking unprecedented faith with this unprecedented vision. If the vision itself was not unique, then it had to be the faith and how the vision was obtained that was unparalleled. The only way that faith could be so remarkable was its ability to take the prophet, uninvited, where others had been able to go only with God's bidding."
Book of Mormon #2
Helaman 5-6
Old Testament
Micah 1-2
General Conference

Laying the Foundation of a Great Work

Elder Steven R. Bangerter

"Lessons taught through the traditions we establish in our homes, though small and simple, are increasingly important in today's world. What are the small and simple things that, when established, will perform a great work in the lives of our children?"

I was up early enough to see Trina before she left for work but not Addy before she left for school. Addy leaves at 5:30. 
Darrel took Rowan and Ruby to school and then he and Lola went to the gym. 

James is so worried about his job because the City of Mesa is so difficult to work with. He hopes that they get permits today but I'm not so sure. We left Darrel and Trina's at 9:30 and dropped off my things at Kim's before she left for work. Tiger, their big cat, checks out my stuff. 

Our next stop was the UPS store at the Andersen Fiesta shopping center on Chandler Blvd and Dobson. We sent the Christmas stockings to Texas and Ben's Christmas package to Idaho. It feels good to have everything mailed early. 

On to Kyrene and Warner to a landscaping job that Armando is working on to give him a check for supervising James's job while he is in the hospital. From here we got on the 101 North and headed for Shea Blvd. to the Honor Health hospital which is about 30 miles away. 

The doctor told James to use the valet parking, put they were full so we had to find our own parking space behind the hospital in a medical center. As a result it was a little after 11 when James checked in. He was supposed to be there at 11. Admissions took awhile and then we were escorted to the 2nd floor where they do surgery. I was invited to go back in preop to say goodbye to James. As they wheeled him back to surgery I said goodbye and went back out to the waiting room where Stacy was waiting for me. 
A Mr. Lopez began talking to us and we pretty much got his life story. He was a nice man but soon we excused ourselves and went down to the cafeteria. I had a green chili burro and Stacy had a pulled pork sandwich. The dining area was closed because of a recent fire so we went outside on the patio to eat. 

When we went back upstairs we sat in a different waiting area to avoid Mr. Lopez so we could talk. Stacy told me about laser technology and Joshua and Evan running for mayor of Biz Town along with six other kids. Stacy said Joshua had a meltdown because he doesn't think he's popular and he won't win anyway so he should just give up.  Paul suggested that they use famous quotes used by Presidents of the United States in his speech. One of the quotes they used was "Ask not what Biz Town can do for you but what you can do for Biz Town." At the end he said that if he was elected he would recommend a 30 second dance every 30 minutes and then he proceeded to do a little dance. He won by a landslide and as a result made Evan feel sad. When Evan found out that Paul wrote Josh's speech he didn't feel so bad.

Jared Ammon is home and he brought a 3 1/2 chihuahua with him. Stacy says he spends most of the day on the couch watching sports.

The surgery started around 1:15 and Stacy stayed for about 3 hours. As she left Kim was coming, I'm surprised they didn't see each other. 

Dr. Crandall, the surgeon came out and told Kim and I that the surgery went very well and that James would be in recovery for a couple of hours. It was actually 3. Kim had to leave. 

I waited for James upstairs in room 5306 and was there when he arrived and I stayed all night. He was very groggy. 
Darrel came by this evening at sat with us for awhile. It's a 35 mile drive from where he lives. Thank you Darrel.

 Love the Reidhead's new house in Georgia!

So many beautiful pictures of the 

Idaho Falls temple.

 Love this quilt!

 Peek-a-boo!

So many cute faces!

Monday, December 3rd, 2018

Provo, Utah

15th operating temple

Dedicated: 9 Feb 1972

By: Joseph Fielding Smith

Jesus Christ, Death of

John 12:33
This he said, signifying what death he should die.

Book of Mormon #1

Ether 2:13-25
*The lord wants us to grow and learn as we make our own decisions. He also wants us to take our conclusions to Him frequently for His confirmation. When the brother of Jared asked the Lord about the matter of light for the vessels, the Lord answered with a question of His own: "What will ye that I should do that ye may have light in your vessels"? According to President Harold B. Lee, the Lord's question was similar to saying the following: 'Well, have you any good ideas? What would you suggest that we should do in order to have light? Then the Lord went away and left him alone. It was as though the Lord were saying to him, 'Look, I gave you a mind to think with, and I gave you agency to use it. Now you do all you can to help yourself with this problem; and then, after you've done all you can, I'll step in to help you.'" After considering the possibilities, the brother of Jared demonstrated his great faith by asking the Lord to touch 16 stones and supply lights. The Lord answered this plea and not only provided light for the vessels but gave this faithful man a vision unlike any other. President Lee concluded: "This is the principle in action. If you want the blessing, don't just kneel down and pray about it. Prepare yourselves in every conceivable way you can in order to make yourselves worthy to receive the blessing you seek." 

Book of Mormon #2

Helaman 3-4
Old Testament
Jonah 3-4

General Conference

Lift Up Your Head and Rejoice

M. Joseph Brough

"I was forever changed upon hearing these words from Elder Neal A. Maxwell of the Quorum of the Twelve, spoken in the midst of his struggle with leukemia. He said, 'I was doing some pensive pondering and these 13 instructive and reassuring words came into my mind: 'I have given you leukemia that you might teach my people with authenticity.' He then went on to express how this experience had blessed him with 'perspective about the great realities of eternity. ...Such glimpses of eternity can help us to travel the next 100 yards, which may be very difficult."

I was up at five this morning. James got up around six. We had scriptures and prayers before we started getting ready for our trip to the valley. James made a trip to town in my car to get gas for his truck because his truck would have never made it. 

I have two more packages to mail today. I forgot to send Lois's Christmas stockings to the kids in Texas so I will need to send them today. I also have Ben's Christmas package. 

We are taking both the car and the truck. James is leaving the truck and the Bobcat in the valley for the Mesa job which Armando will be running when and if they get the permits. 

I was ready to leave a little before 11. James was still doing something with the trailer. I told him I had to stop at the church to leave my roaster and then I was going to the post office. He actually ended up passing me up while I was at the post office and I never caught him because I stopped in Show Low to wash Lexy. I never caught up to him. I went the Salt River way in case something happened to James's rig I would be there to help.

I had wanted to stop at Deseret Book when I got in to town but there was no time. I drove directly to my appointment with Dr. Shah. The appointment was a consultation about putting in an implant. James had a meeting with Armando then he dropped his truck and the Bobcat off at Bill V.'s yard and then walked over to Sheri's to wait for me to pick him up. 

I am set for an implant on Tuesday, January 8th and thanks to Care Credit I will pay $250 a month for the next year interest free. Whoopee....$3,000 is still a lot of money. Am I sure I want to do this? Why is everything so expensive?

I picked up James and we went to Olive Garden for dinner. I had Zuppa Toscana soup and salad and of course breadsticks. James had salmon. 

After dinner we went across the street to Target to finish shopping for Ben's Christmas package. I was a little disappointed that I couldn't find cozy socks. 

We finally ended up at Darrel and Trina's for the night. Lola was certainly "wound up" this evening. She had a rope around her stuffed dog Tommy and was dragging him all over the place. She, Ruby, and I also played hide the ball in the Christmas tree. I was afraid we were going to knock the tree over so we changed the rules a little. 

Trina was telling me about her dad's childhood this evening. She said his mother was killed by a drunk driver when he was 18 months old. He used to stand and wait at the door for her to come home. His mom was pregnant when she was killed. They story gets worse. His first stepmom was a little crazy and did some bizarre things including trying to kidnap Trina's dad. 

His second step mom was very jealous of anything his dad did for him and demanded he do the same for her kids. Finally one of his older sisters came and got him and took him home to live with her family. Elder Bernecker's grandmother wanted to adopt him and have him come and live with them. Bob, Trina's dad is one of the nicest, kindest, unselfish people I have ever met and I never knew he had such a difficult childhood. 

When Darrel got home from work at 9:30 He went upstairs and changed into a white shirt and tie so he could give James a blessing.  The kids were in bed and Trina was upstairs so it was just the three of us. The blessing was a great comfort and Darrel emphasized the importance of healing and being patient after surgery.

I did some walking before going to bed. 

President Nelson's talk at last night's devotional was wonderful.

 The Long Road ahead

Love these two!

 Our friends the Umphress family

 Dec 3, 2012

Sunday, December 2nd, 2018

Ogden, Utah

14th operating temple 

Dedicated: 18-20 Jan 1972

By: Joseph Fielding Smith

Jesus Christ, Death of

Luke 9:31
Who appeared in glory, and spake of his decease which he should accomplish at Jerusalem.
Book of Mormon #1
Ether 2:1-12
*Ether 2:8-11 states what Moroni called "the everlasting decree of God." (v.10) concerning this land of promise. Stated three or four times, this decree is that "whatsoever nation shall possess this land shall serve God, or they shall be swept off" (v.9). President Gordon B. Hinckley taught that obedience is essential if the promised land is to keep its promised blessings: "Great are the promises concerning this land of America. We are told unequivocally that it is a choice land, and whatsoever nation shall possess it shall be free from bondage, and from captivity, and from all other nations under heaven, if they will but serve the God of the land, who is Jesus Christ" (Ether 2:12). This is the crux of the entire matter - obedience to the commandments of God." (Oct 2001, GC). Compare Ether 2:7-12 with Nephi 1:6-10. List the promises and the warnings given to the inhabitants of America.
Book of Mormon #2
Alma 63 - Helaman 2
Old Testament
Jonah 1-2
General Conference

Deep and Lasting Conversion to Heavenly Father and the Lord Jesus Christ

Elder Quentin L. Cook
"This Sunday schedule allows more time for a home evening and to study the gospel at home on Sunday or at other times as individuals and families may choose. A family activity night could be held on Monday or at other times. To this end, leaders should continue to keep Monday evenings free from Church meetings and activities. However, time spent in home evening, gospel study, and activities for individuals and families may be scheduled according to their individual circumstances."

Bishop Miller conducted our fast and testimony meeting today and told of an experience of going to the temple in Mexico and how different it was because they really aren't worried about starting on time. He also bore testimony that the Church is true and is led by Jesus Christ and His prophet.

Others who bore their testimonies: 

Sister Vaught, Brother Greer who will be serving a mission soon. He is going to be a secretary to someone in an area authority presidency. Brother Greer said that President Nelson has been "renewed," and is preparing us for the Second Coming of Jesus Christ. Sister Hahn, and Sister Van Haren who are both new bore their testimonies about gratitude and the importance of the scriptures. Dave Westbrook who was the keynote speaker at an agricultural convention in Nigeria, bore his testimony about how grateful he is for the gospel. Brother Price said he made a commitment in 1989 to bear his testimony at least once a quarter and he has been able to do that on a consistent basis. 

We had a sister visit from Mesa and she bore a pure and simple five point testimony including Heavenly Father, Jesus Christ, the Book of Mormon, Joseph Smith as a prophet and President Nelson as the prophet today. Jackson, who is waiting to go back on his mission after being treated for six months for ADHD bore his testimony about Heavenly Father and how he knows us and loves us and knows our needs. Dear sweet Ellen bore her testimony about her baptism and her husbands this coming Saturday. She said when she was a little Jewish girl she felt like something was missing when she went to temple. She said she has figured out that what was missing was Jesus. She and Dave will both be baptized. They having been investigating the Church for over 12 years so this is pretty exciting!

James bore his testimony about how he is "changed" because of the gospel of Jesus Christ. Kathy Crane admonished us to pray for those that we don't see here. Ty Applegate, a priest, said that the reason we are here is so that we can learn to become like Christ. 

It was snowy and cold today. I think we probably got at least 4 inches of snow. A good day to stay inside and study the gospel.

I learned some things about the prophet Jonah:

Both Jonah and Jess were from the Galilee area. That Jonah's story is a true one is evidenced by 2 Kings 14:25 and 3 New Testament references. The story of Jonah was referred to by our Lord on two occasions when he was asked for a sign from heaven. In each case he gave 'the sign of the prophet Jonah,' the event in that prophet's life being a foreshadowing of Jesus' own death and resurrection (Matt 12:39-41; Luke 11:29-30).

James and I came home after the block, ate some lunch and took a nap on the couch. I cut my nap short and went in to prepare for tithing settlement. James said we were signed up for 2:15 today. I got everything ready, woke James up and shot out the door after 2. We got to the Church at 2:17 to find the door locked. There were a couple of cars in the parking lot so James found another door and got in. None of the bishopric were there. We looked at the signup sheet and discovered that we were signed up for next Sunday at 2:15. Oh well, at least now we are ready.

Christmas quote from the movie, "A Twist on Christmas":

"Amidst all the hubbub, don't forget to look up and

see the lights." 

This evening James and I watched the First Presidency Christmas Devotional. Afterwards I sent out group texts to the family about James's surgery on Tuesday. 

I realized tonight that I forgot to send some of Lois's Christmas stockings to the family in Texas and Arkansas. I will have to do that tomorrow when I mail Ben's Christmas package.

These are a few of my favorite people:

 Chandler State Champs in football again!

 Time flies!

So precious!

So many gorgeous pictures of the

Idaho Falls temple.

On our way home from Church.

Standing on the corner in Winslow, Arizona

is Winslow the pig.

Saturday, December 1st, 2018

Oakland, California

13th operating temple

Dedicated: 17-19 Nov 1964

By: David O. McKay

Jesus Christ, Death of

Mark 14:55

And the chief priests and all the council sought for witness against Jesus to put him to death; and found none.

Book of Mormon #1

Ether 1:1-43

*The Lord explained to the brother of Jared that blessings had come to his people as a result of prayers offered over a long time. President Spencer W. Kimball taught that we must put great effort into our prayers and that we must pray frequently: "Do you get answers to your prayers? If not, perhaps you did not pay the price. Do you offer a few trite words and worn-out phrases, or do you talk intimately to the Lord? Do you pray occasionally when you should be praying regularly, often, constantly? Do you offer pennies to pay heavy debts when you should give dollars to erase that obligation? When you pray, do you just speak, or do you also listen? Your Savior said, 'Behold, I stand at the door and knock: if any man hear my voice, and open the door, I will come in to him, and will sup with him, and he with me.' (Rev 3:20) Should we ever fail to get an answer to our prayers, we must look into our own lives for a reason."

Book of Mormon #2

Alma 60-62

Old Testament

Obadiah 1

General Conference

Opening Remarks

President Russell M. Nelson

"For many years, Church leaders have been working on an integrated curriculum to strengthen families and individuals through a home-centered and Church-supported plan to learn doctrine, strengthen faith, and foster greater personal worship. Our efforts over these recent years to hallow the Sabbath - to make it a delight and a personal sign to God of our love for Him - will be augmented by the adjustments we will now introduce."

"Christmas Spirit is more powerful than you could ever imagine. People need Christmas to remind themselves of how good they can be." - St. Nicholas from "The Christmas Chronicles"

James was a man afire today. He went to the dump, got firewood and started a fire and worked on Christmas lights and decorating.

We drove up to the UPS in Show Low to mail our Arkansas and Texas packages at 4:50. I had checked online for store hours and thought they were open until 6 but that was not the case. The woman said they normally close at 4 on Saturday but because it is the holidays she is staying open until 5. It took us awhile to pack the two packages so she ended up locking us in. We got our packages ready and sent early this year!

We went to Walmart and bought some gifts for Curtis Wilhelm. We actually shopped together. James picked out the jacket and I did the rest.

Hat, gloves, Christmas blanket,

football and jacket.

Curtis's birthday is not until the 7th but since we will be gone

next week we gave his gifts to him early.

Curtis is a survivor of leukemia. He was in the Phoenix Children's Hospital when we first moved into the ward here in Vernon.

He has been in remission the past few years. He is also in James's Primary lesson and I taught him for two years.

We had a difficult time getting out of Show Low because of the Christmas light parade. We took all the back roads and finally found our way. James was a little frustrated but I thought it was fun and we got to see part of the parade. I saw little native American boys in costume covered in Christmas lights and a float. 

When we got home from town James went over to the Howard's to load up his Bobcat. He is taking it to the valley for the job he has in Mesa and didn't want to wait until Monday morning. He waited until after dark and I think he hurt his back. He also forgot to get gas in his truck and can't even make it into Stanford. We will worry about that on Monday.

 Christmas movies: "Christmas Perfection," "Mingle All the Way," "A Twist of Christmas," and "Christmas Wonderland."

Charlie and her giraffe.

I wonder if he has a name?

Making one for someone else.