Accra, Ghana
117th operating temple
Dedicated: 11 Jan 2004
By: Gordon B. Hinckley
Jesus Christ, Prophecies about
Jeremiah 23:5
Behold, the days come, saith the Lord, that I will raise unto David a righteous Branch, and a King shall reign and prosper, and shall execute judgment and justice in the earth.
Book of Mormon
Alma 22:1-14 Why did Aaron begin teaching by establishing his belief system in God?
D&C
68:25-35 What is our stewardship as parents?
"Come Follow Me"
FSS & FHE
67:10-14 How do jealousy, fear, and pride keep us from growing closer to the Lord? Why can't a "natural man" be in the Lord's presence? (verse 12; Mosiah 3:19). What do we find in these verses that inspires us to "continue in patience until we are perfected"? (verse 13). "Be Ye Therefore Perfect - Eventually" (Oct 2017 GC, Jeffrey R. Holland)
68:3-4 The words of the Lord's servants are the will of the Lord, the mind of the Lord, and the power of God unto salvation.
68:25-35 Why is the home the best place for children to learn these things?
AprGenCon
"Defending Our Divinely Inspired Constitution"
President Dallin H. Oaks
I believe the United States Constitution contains at least five divinely inspired principles.
First is the principle that the source of government power is the people.
A second inspired principle is the division of delegated power between the nation and its subsidiary states.
Another inspired principle is the separation of powers. The inspiration in the American convention was to delegate independent executive, legislative, and judicial powers so these three branches could exercise checks upon one another.
A fourth inspired principle is in the cluster of vital guarantees of individual rights and specific limits on government authority in the Bill of Rights, adopted by amendment just three years after the Constitution went into force. Without a Bill of Rights, America could not have served as the host nation for the Restoration of the gospel, which began just three decades later.
Fifth and finally, I see divine inspiration in the vital purpose of the entire Constitution. We are to be governed by law and not by individuals, and our loyalty is to the Constitution and its principles and processes, not to any office holder.
Ten Virtues
That Will Heal Our Hearts and Homes
Gordon B. Hinckley
#1
Love
Love is the only force that can erase the difference between people or bridge the chasms of bitterness. Love is like the Polar Star. In a changing world, it is a constant. It is the security of the home. It is a beacon of hope in a world of distress.
Inklings
We have a primary responsibility to set a tone and be role models of kindness, inclusion, and civility - to teach Christlike behavior to the rising generation in what we say and how we act.
-Elder Gary E. Stevenson
One of the reasons I listen to so many different "Come Follow Me" podcasts is that they all have their own approach and takeaways from the lesson and different things they emphasize.
For example, the sisters on "Act in Doctrine", spoke about the process of perfection and on "Scripture Gems" they talked about the importance of being patient. The last sentence in 67:13 is: Wherefore, continue in patience until ye are perfected.
A couple of quotes from "Teaching with Power":
Adam and Eve called the scriptures "Book of Remembrance." Scriptures are a treasure worth more then worldly wealth.
Brother Wilcox talked about the importance of scriptures while Mike and Brice on Talking Scripture talked about receiving revelation.
From the Doctrine and Covenants student manual Religion 324-325, p. 148: This is a long quote by President Kimball but since he is the one who inspired me to start keeping a journal, so here it is:
"Your own private journal should record the way you face up to challenges that beset you. Do not suppose life changes so much that your experiences will not be interesting to your posterity. Experiences of work, relations with people, and an awareness of the rightness and wrongness of actions will always be relevant. . . .
"Your own journal, like most others, will tell of problems as old as the world and how you dealt with them.
"Your journal should contain your true self rather than a picture of you when you are 'made up' for a public performance. There is a temptation to paint one's virtues in rich color and whitewash the vices, but there is also the opposite pitfall of accentuating the negative. Personally I have little respect for anyone who delves into the ugly phases of the life he is portraying, whether it be his own or another's. The truth should be told, but we should not emphasize the negative. Even a long life full of inspiring experiences can be brought to the dust by one ugly story. Why dwell on that one ugly truth about someone whose life has been largely circumspect?
"The good biographer will not depend on passion but on good sense. He will weed out the irrelevant and seek the strong, novel, and interesting. ...
"Your journal is your autobiography, so it should be kept carefully. You are unique, and there may be incidents in your experience that are more noble and praiseworthy in their way than those recorded in any other life. There may be a flash of illumination here and a story of faithfulness there; you should truthfully record your real self and not what other people may see in you.
"Your story should be written now while it is fresh and while the true details are available.
"A journal is the literature of superiority. Each individual can become superior in his own humble life.
"What could you do better for your children and your children's children than to record the story of your life, your triumphs over adversity, your recovery after a fall, your progress when all seemed black, your rejoicing when you had finally achieved?
"Some of what you write may be humdrum dates and places, but there will also be rich passages that will be quoted by your posterity.
"Get a notebook, my young folks, a journal that will last through all time, and maybe the angels may quote for it for eternity. Begin today and write in it your goings and comings, your deepest thoughts, your achievements and your failures, your associations and your triumphs, your impressions and your testimonies. Remember, the Savior chastised those who failed to record important events." ("The Angels May Quote from It," New Era, Oct. 1975, pp. 4-5.)
Keeping journals is a latter-day imperative.
Today is Sister Wood's 75th birthday. James is one of her ministering brothers. I suggested we make her a birthday cake so her called her and asked what kind of cake she would like. One of the choices he gave her was strawberry and she said that sounded great. I have a recipe for a strawberry poke cake but needed some cream cheese and jello. James offered to go to the store to get it. By the time he got back it was almost four o'clock. I quick got the cake in the oven and then began looking through the recipe. When the cake gets out of the oven it's supposed to cool for 20 minutes and then I am supposed to poke holes in it 1/2 inch apart and then pour liquid Jello over it. When I told James I needed Jello I failed to tell him Jello powder and this is what he brought home:
What I need is on the left. What I got on the right. It's a good thing I had some Jello in the pantry.
Here comes the real clincher. Once the Jello is poured over the cake the cake is supposed to be in the oven for three hours. I put it in at 4:30 and took it out at 6:30. James diced a pound of fresh strawberries and I mixed up the frosting, Coolwhip, cream cheese, powdered sugar and vanilla. I put the frosting on, which by the way is delicious, and then put the strawberries over the top of the frosting. We delivered the cake to Pam around 7 p.m. She seemed excited about it. She texted James later and said she loved it that it was delicious!
Something happened to me this afternoon and I don't know why it happened. I had a flare up in my upper left arm. I was trying to index but I couldn't even reach out to type on the computer. I had to keep my arm up next to my body and couldn't use it at all. I texted my temple co-ordinator, Sister Elmer and told her. She thanked me and said she understood. I really do love her!
I did able to get my steps today. I had all of them by 5 p. m.
The igniters James ordered for the oven came in today. Two things were wrong. First, the oven only has one igniter and
he had to order two according to Viking. He took the oven door
off and when he found out the igniters weren't going to fit in this
oven he couldn't get the door back on. Finally he got in on enough
so it wouldn't fall off but it's still not right. He packed up the two
igniters to send them back and sent a picture to Viking of
the one he needed.
The red pot on the stove is full of venison stew. It was something I did before my arm went bad.
Congratulations to Jared, Kacey & Charlie! They just bought their first home!
Scarlett in Galveston
Building collapse in Florida
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