December 29, 2013 Fifth Sunday Lesson

December 29, 2013 Since this was the fifth Sunday, we had a combined meeting that continued the theme of goal setting. Bruce Roundy and Laura Card spoke. Brother Roundy told of several aspects of goal setting found in Preach My Gospel and the scriptures. He told of how when he was in graduate school, he was one of the few students who had a family, had to work, went to classes and had homework, and had church callings. He was able to complete his degree successfully and get a good job as a professor by trusting in the Lord and receiving the clarity of mind necessary for writing papers and proposals and teaching. Sister Card gave some practical advice based on Task Oriented Goal Setting principles. In order to succeed, a person not only needs a goal, but needs to ask “What can I do?” “How do I do it?” and “How much do I want it?” She cited scriptures that contain the phrase “endure to the end,” and also movies that reflect such eternal truths as “Baby steps” (What About Bob?) to suggest that small steps are effective; “Keep on swimming,” (Finding Nemo) to suggest that persevering is necessary; “Never give up; never surrender” (Galaxy Quest) to suggest that giving up is not an option, although she also quoted Better Off Dead, “Go straight and if something gets in your way, turn” to suggest that flexibility is also important. The combined messages from Sacrament meeting and the fifth Sunday meeting is that goal setting is important and necessary to accomplish anything worthwhile.

Lesson for December 1, 2013

December 1, 2013 Today our lesson was given by Paige Gibson on the “Symbols of Christmas.” Paige loves to see symbols and see that they have a deeper meaning and Christmas has many symbols. Symbols don’t just have one meaning. They can be specific to you. She found that many Christmas symbols originated in pagan beliefs. She believes that God came before pagans and gave us symbols to remind us of his gospel and the pagans just caught onto His meaning. Moses 6:63 talks about how all things have been created to bear record of God—everything. So we should look beyond what pagans said and see God in everything. Paige wanted all of us to tell what we see in Christmas symbols. First are the colors—red and green and white, silver, and gold. Red represents the blood of Christ. We are fortunate to have the sacrament every Sunday. D&C 76:69 tells that the just men who are made perfect through the atonement and blood of Christ. Green symbolizes life—eternal life. Moses 1:39 tells about God’s purpose being our eternal life. White is often a symbol of purity, as Christ was pure and perfect. Snowflakes is that we are all individuals and our souls are worth having Christ die for us. Another symbol is gifts like the Magi gave to Jesus and that God gave Jesus to us. John 3:16—God gave his only Begotten Son to the world. Jesus did not give material things, but eyes to the blind, legs to the lame, light in darkness, and his service and his life. We should give as Jesus gave. Even Santa Claus and his good attributes can help us see that the Spirit of giving is important. President Faust said that Santa Claus is a symbol of joy, giving, and childlike—attributes we should have—just like the Savior. One sister said her grandson prayed in thanks for Santa Claus, but to give him a bigger budget. However, he said that Jesus is the real reason for Christmas. You can remind your kids of the wise men and how they are the ones who brought gifts. Another symbol is light. It symbolizes the light of Christ, the star of Bethlehem. So many scriptures about light. Helaman 3 when Samuel the Lamanite told the Nephites about the day and a night and a day of light. 3 Nephi 9:18 tells about when the Savior had been crucified and the people in darkness heard His voice, saying He is the light of the world. Lots of scriptures about us letting our light shine and having hope. Candy canes have the colors of Christmas and the shepherds’ crook. The rod that shepherds used was to beat off predators and guide us. So the crook guides us and helps us go the right way. The atonement helps us overcome problems. Other symbols are shepherds, who are humble, work hard, guide their sheep and they know their shepherd and follow them through gentleness. They were the first to hear about Jesus, not the kings. The wise men are symbols of giving and they were kings, but they were steadfast in looking for Christ and rejoiced to find Jesus. There are lots of important symbols in the nativity, including the baby Jesus. First and foremost there was a little family with a baby—in purity, faith, and hope. Except you become as a little child, you cannot enter into the kingdom of heaven. Christmas is for children. Our greatest symbol should be our life as it reflects like a mirror how we live like Christ.

Relief Society Christmas Dinner Dec. 17

Our annual Relief Society Christmas Dinner will take place on December 17 a 6:30 p.m. at the Church. We will have a Christmas dinner with a short program. Please come to be with all of us.