Lesson for December 28, 2014

Lesson for December 28, 2014 Our lesson today was given by Kristine Hanson on a talk by Elder Richard G. Scott, “Make the Exercise of Faith Your First Priority.” Elder Scott speaks of the peace that comes from faith. He gives four tools to increase our faith: prayer, scripture study, Family Home Evening, and temple attendance. These things will help us increase our faith and help us through adversity. He describes prayer as a conversation we have with our Heavenly Father, who is interested in every aspect of our lives. Elder Scott says we should pray often to have that influence with us always. Sister Heather Cantrell said that when her daughter Kristen became so ill in the first of November, every member of the family felt like she would die, but they also felt peace because of the gospel. They shared with everyone they knew the need for prayers for their daughter and sister. Heather said her patriarchal blessing says for her to pray and her prayers would be answered, so she did. The doctor also told her to pray, because he did not have much hope for Kristen. She feels that her prayers have been answered and that the faith of their family has been strengthened. Besides personal prayer, the power of family prayer is necessary to help strengthen every member of the family against all the evil surrounding us as we go out into the world. Kristine said her family had nine children and that the family prayers in her family were rather hit and miss. The older children had many problems with the gospel. She said her younger sister told her that the parents instituted family prayer and the results were that the four youngest were all married in the temple. Even though they have had problems, the gospel has been a blessing in their lives. Sister Jill Judd said she knew of a family who had a baby of about two months old, but they had already started having family prayer with the baby. It is a good start for their family. We may not always think that family prayer is doing any good. Elder Bednar said that each family prayer is a brushstroke on the canvas of faith. Another sisters said that her parents were consistent about having family prayer in their family. She remembers doing it every day and how it influenced her through their consistent efforts. Vira Bahr said in her family they use their electronic devices to say prayer together and to study their scriptures while driving together, even if they are not all home together. Elder Scott said that reading scriptures is more important than sleep, school, work, TV, video games, or social media. Ruth Hendriksen said the scripture stories from Ruth, Esther, and Nephi in the Book of Mormon have strengthened her, because they showed her that praying and thanking God would strengthen people. She remembers Job and all the things we are promised and how scripture study gives us a foundation to trust God. She has a scripture study journal where she writes down thoughts she has during her scripture study. Once, when her daughter Tamara left home to go out on her own, Ruth felt broken up over the loss and she found a scripture during her study that says broken hearts will be mended and that comforted her. Elder Scott also has several endnotes at the end of his talk about the experiences of several General Authorities and their own scripture study. About Family Home Evening, he says it is more important than employment demands, sports, extracurricular activities, homework, or anything else. Jenni Harker said that when her two oldest children were 2 and 3 years old, she thought that if she parented perfectly, her children would be perfect, but that is not always the case. She and her husband Brent decided to have Family Home Evening regularly and since they started it while the children were young, they have never had a problem with it. In their family, they have lessons about 2/3 of the time and activities the other times. She feels it is important for children to have friends in the family and the activities help them be friends. It is especially important because children have so many outside influences. She asked her children why they liked FHE and they said that it was a neutral time. If one person had a problem with someone, the lesson about that problem was for everyone and didn’t single any one person out. Another son said it was how he stopped using bad language, because it gave him the desire to stop. He had his mother put out a swearing jar where he had to put money in if he swore, especially at games. The first time he came back from a game, he had to put in a dollar, but after three to four weeks he felt like he had the bad habit licked. Jenni said that treats are really important. She said that while everyone sits around eating sugar and relaxing they learn amazing things about each other. One of her boys, Jim, said that because they had FHE so regularly as a child, it was easier for him to start it up with his own family. Elder Scott went on to discuss temple attendance. He said don’t let anything get in the way of temple attendance. Sandi Green said the temple helped her family several times. For example, when her daughter Joy came home from her mission, she was followed home by a young man who wanted to marry her. This young man did not like her family and pulled her away. Sandi said that as Joy became consumed by the relationship, Sandi and Steve started putting her name in the temple. Sandi said she went often. Then one of Joy’s missionary companions came to visit in Utah Valley and wanted to take Joy with her to visit the companion’s parents in Idaho. The young man wanted to go, too, but ended up not going. Joy and her companion visited and even went to the temple in Idaho and when she came back, she told the young man to leave and that she would not marry him. Later in Joy’s life, she suffered from breast cancer. Sandi and Steve asked for our ward to pray for her and go to the temple for her. Joy said she could feel the support from those prayers and temple attendance and was eventually cured. Kristine said that these four tools will help us call down the blessings of heaven, especially if they become habits.

Lesson for December 14, 2014

Today our lesson was given by Megan Miller. She started out with scriptures from D&C 45:22-33, Matthew 24:14, and 3rd Nephi 25:5-6 about signs of the Second Coming of Christ. Some of the signs in these scriptures are the light of the Gospel being restored, the gathering of Israel, commotion in the Earth, wars and rumors of wars, iniquity abounding, desolating sickness and sickness in general, every knee shall bow and every tongue confess that Jesus is the Christ, missionary work and rejection of missionary work, disciples standing in holy places, the hearts of the children shall turn to the fathers and the hearts of the fathers to the children. Megan asked if we are prepared for all of that. President Smith said that most people have the wrong idea by what is meant by the end of the world. When Christ comes, there will be an end to the world. Instead, people will obey and God’s kingdom will come. Megan said we are often scared by the idea of all the things we will face, but if we have the right idea, we can look forward to the end of the world and not be afraid. If we look at the things that will happen, we can see that many have already happened or are happening. So many of the positive things are happening, from missionary work and the Restoration, the boom in family history, the gathering of Israel, etc. Megan went on in the lesson where President Smith said the Lord is not going to wait until we are righteous. When He is ready, He is ready and if we aren’t ready, it will be just too bad. So what can we do to prepare? Don’t panic and don’t worry, if we are living righteously. The Second Coming will happen to all of us no matter if we are on earth or in heaven. We should not worry about offending someone and be glad we are members of the Church. Everybody needs somebody and it might just be the right one who makes a difference. Take every opportunity to serve and grow. Every day, if we are working on improving, we should be prepared. Put oil in our lamps so we can be prepared. In Matthew 24:14 it states that the gospel will be preached in all nations. How have we seen this begin in our lifetime? There are many different kinds of missions now—even from our own homes and on the internet. When the age limit was lowered, so many people were energized to leave. Wasn’t it amazing that their parents had prepared and prepared their children enough to support that kind of mass exodus? So many young people want to go to the temple and do baptisms for the dead. Now so many people have access to Church materials through the media. The Church has a great ad campaign about Share the Gift that Jesus Christ is the gift to the world. There is even a huge ad on Times Square in New York. We can share the Church magazines with each other, as well. Megan turned to the lesson where President Smith said the Latter-day Saints may be considered strange and peculiar that they are the ones to spread this message, but we have confidence that we are the ones and that when the Lord comes again, we will have preached the gospel to everyone. Megan’s brother has been sharing something every night with things he shows his family about the Savior. He does it on Facebook and many people have been touched. In 3rd Nephi 25:5-6 Family History work is mentioned. How is it preparing you? The youth in our ward are so excited to do family history. It is so easy to get on the Internet. Many times the temple is full and there is a good reason why we have so many new ones. The spirit of Elijah is also working on non-members and they are getting excited, too. Even the Vue had Ancestry.com on their television show. It’s great that we see that for what it is and that the Lord has a hand in it. Even the youth who are so tied to their cell phones are trained to do family history. The stories are important, so look for the stories. Only a small portion of the things we have are not digitized. We need to get the stories and pictures digitized. Now up to fifteen minutes of an audio recording can be uploaded to Family Search. Megan showed the video about the 10 virgins where only 5 were wise and 5 were foolish. The foolish ones wanted some of the wise virgins’ oil and were told to go buy some for themselves, but there was none to buy and by the time they got back, the door was closed. We need to be prepared and if we are not, we need to make ourselves be prepared.

Lesson for December 14, 2014

Lesson for December 7, 2014

Today our lesson was given by Maggie Kopp about Chapter 25 of the Joseph Fielding Smith book, “Good Tidings of Great Joy.” Maggie talked about the exhibits she is making in the BYU Library for Christmas and some of the things President Smith did with his family, especially the significance of the Wise Men who visited Jesus Christ bringing gold, frankincense, and myrrh. We don’t really know that there were three or that they were kings. Matthew was trying to show that Christ was the Savior for everyone, not just the Jews. They did bring the gifts, which have significance. Myrrh is used to embalm dead bodies, which may seem sad for a baby, but Christ died and rose again. Gold is something given to a king. Joseph and Mary were poor, so such a gift was precious. Frankincense is an herb that priests in the temple burn to send the smoke and the prayers heavenward, often in conjunction with burnt sacrifices. So it could symbolize the holy nature of Jesus Christ and His sacrifice. Joseph Fielding Smith said that although Christ was divine, He had to learn line upon line as we do. Maggie asked about how it makes us feel to know that Jesus is our King. Jesus is the most loving, kind king we could have. He is our priest and Redeemer. Mosiah states that there is no other way or name given whereby we can be saved. We celebrate Christmas for this reason and to save all men from spiritual and temporal death. President Smith said that sometimes we commercialize Christmas too much and forget His reason for coming to earth. He volunteered to come in the Meridian of Time to save us. He was willing to do that for us. Maggie asked what symbols stand out in the Christmas story. The star provided guidance, helped the shepherds, and symbolizes the Light of Christ. The Christmas tree has branches that point up to heaven and is an evergreen to symbolize life. The music is a huge part of Christmas. Sometimes the music touches our souls and reminds us about the good part of life and the gospel, sometimes in places we would not expect it to be. The shepherds were the first to know. They took care of their sheep. The manger is a humble place to be born. Have accepted the gift and symbolism of this great event? Do we have faith that the Atonement can be for us. Sometimes the spirit of Christmas can be brought about by family traditions. Shanacy Critchfield said her family has a separate tree that is for gifts her children work on all year. Another sister said her book had a book that had spiritual stories in it. If we would embrace others in need, such as the homeless, would we see them for who they are? Maybe we can celebrate Christmas in April or July. People make such a huge thing about Christmas because it is the tiniest step for people to come closer to being like Christ. What kinds of gifts can we give the Savior? We can give him service or help out at the Bishop’s Storehouse or the temple—time and service. We can forgive others and forget—Christmas is for giving and for getting. We can be good examples of being obedient. That is truly a gift to our Heavenly Father. We can use the gifts Heavenly Father has given us, such as patience, and talents. We can find those in need. Maggie ended her lesson with the picture she had from the exhibit of the wise men going to and coming from and she was reminded of the way people who saw the Christ child were affected. She wants us to think of what we can give.

Relief Society dinner Dec. 16

Come and join the sisters for a dinner and a fun white elephant gift exchange (that means no thoughtful or useful gifts).

Lesson for November 23, 2014

Today our lesson was given by Kristine Hanson about “Are We Not All Beggars?” (TFOT) by Elder Jeffrey R. Holland. She started with a Thanksgiving quiz. Are you planning on giving a nice dinner? Did it cost more than $2.50? Can you turn on the water for a drink? Are your children looking forward to having some time off? Are you over 65 and planning a dinner? If someone gets ill can you take them to a hospital? Can you celebrate free of persecution? Are you safe to stroll around the neighborhood? Can you pay your mortgage or rent? If so, you are doing well and better than many people in the world. Elder Holland quoted Mosiah 4: 16-21 about all of us being beggars and the importance of helping the poor. We all depend on God for all we have. So, we ought to impart of our substance to the poor. We should cease withholding our means because they might have brought their circumstances on themselves. Our job is to help the poor no matter what the circumstances. We obtain a remission of our sins by applying to God, but we retain a remission of our sins by helping the poor. Some reasons people are poor is because of laziness, ignorance, lack of education, being born into poverty, oppressive governments, family obligations (little children, illness, etc.), poor choices, health issues, the agency of others that the poor person has no control of (layoffs, downsizing, general economy, stresses), physical capacity, mental stress, overspending, debt, lack of savings, addictions, divorce, death of a spouse, too high expectations, not a thrifty or frugal mindset, pride, procrastination, lack of charity (there is enough if we would share), sense of entitlement, war, famine, drought, natural disasters, keep up with the Joneses. We are so lucky to have been born into a place where we have opportunities, places to go, and education. The Lord has been very clear in all dispensations that we should help the poor. Like Ruth and Naomi stayed alive by gleaning the leftovers in the field. Jesus would have known first hand what poverty was. He relied on the generosity of others for his sustenance. He said even the foxes have a place to live, but not the Son of Man. Before this dispensation was even one year old, the Saints were ordered to not let the poor suffer. Elder Holland said he is not advocating panhandling, but we must do for ourselves what we can, and when we cannot do for ourselves, then we can ask for help. The formula is to do what we can, like Mother Theresa and the woman who anointed Jesus’s feet. Mother Theresa once told a reporter that her work was about love and not about statistics. Christianity is not a statistical endeavor. What can we do? We can make a difference for one, even if we can’t for all. We can pay tithing, so the outpouring of blessings will come. Jessica Lewis took her kids to Welfare Square and she’s amazed at how much our money does for the poor—how far it is stretched. When we all give a little, it adds up. We need to be generous. Linda Campbell said she doesn’t think she has ever been poor because of sharing with others. Kristine said Jon Huntsman was very poor and wanted to be rich to help others and he does. Joni Trewartha said we need to save for hard times and learn job skills and learn homemaking skills. Kristine said we need to teach our children thrift and frugality. Irma Lopez said she is grateful to know how to cook on very little. If we don’t have money, we have the opportunity to serve others through time and goods. If you give your friendship to someone, it helps someone who is struggling. Network with job leads. Vira said she is careful with where she gives, so she is sure the charities are credible. In President Monson’s biography, it tells about how he came home from a trip to Dresden Germany, he came home in his slippers, because he gave his suit and his shoes and his calculator and his coat and socks. President Monson started a clothing mission. He himself has given up to 10 suits a year to needy members. We may not have a lot of money, but there is something we can do. As we do this, blessings will come into our lives.

Lesson for November 16, 2014

Today our lesson was given by Megan Williams. She first asked us which women in scripture are our heroes. One sister said Esther because of her courage. Kristine Hansen chose Ruth as a person of loyalty and because of her love for her mother-in-law and as an ancestor of our Savior. Barbara Alldredge said she respected the mothers of the stripling warriors. She said to notice that it was mothers, plural and many of them would have been single mot hers, because their husbands had laid down their lives when the Lamanites attacked. Elizabeth, the cousin of Mary, was another one mentioned, because Mary sought her out for support and advice, according to Margaret Cook. Women in our own lives who are important were next. Dorothy Davis’s daughter said her mother’s mother is very kind. Someone knocked over the grandfather clock on Christmas Eve during a family gathering and the grandmother requested that no one get into trouble. The granddaughter said she learned that her grandmother had had a temper earlier in her life and had learned to change in her later life. Charlene Farnworth mentioned her professor who said that the women in the class were highly educated and knew what to do, but Charlene thought of generations of women who were educated in what was necessary to survive and take care of their families. Another sister said her mother is amazingly able to keep it together and her testimony never waivers. She hopes she can be like her mother. Adele Hickman’s husband’s grandmother lived in a soddy that became muddy whenever it rained. She wanted a better home, but the husband thought they couldn’t afford it. She told her husband not to stop her from working toward a better situation and she eventually was able to pay for and build a new house. Peggy Benson was mentioned as a great lady. She was in our ward for years and died a few year ago. Megan William mentioned her Laurel leader, Charlotte Jones. Charlotte was an older lady who seemed like an odd choice to be a Laurel leader, but she was a great influence on the girls and was willing to teach the girls important things. Megan asked why it is important to recognize the difference between men and women and value who we are. Margaret Cook read from the Proclamation on the Family that all people, men and women are created in God’s image. It was mentioned that women can multi-task better than men. Katy Lamb said that as a little girl she wondered why girls could not pass the sacrament and her father said to go ask the bishop. Now she appreciates who men and women can make a whole as a couple. Claudia Laycock has practiced law for thirty years and has come to the conclusion that men and women are very different. We must appreciate the differences. Another sister said we are sons and daughters of our Heavenly Father and have many of His attributes. A quote from D. Todd Christopherson said women bring with them a special moral authority. A quote from Margaret Nadauld said we have enough women with bad qualities, we need women of faith, kindness, and virtue. Megan Williams said that her mother is a tiny, quiet person who has an iron rod for a backbone. Her mother rode her bicycle to work, even at night, for a while to support her family. The power for men and women comes from living like the Savior. There are all types of strong women. Megan asked in what ways have men and women complemented each other. One woman’s mother said she didn’t know what they would do without their father and her father said he didn’t know what they would do without their mother. Another sister said her father and mother help each other because her father is a musician and not concerned with practical things and her mother is very practical. Another quote from the Proclamation said that fathers and mothers should help each other. Chelsea Jolley said her kids have learned to call Dad at night if something happens and not bother Mom. Dad can calm Mom down. However, if they want help cleaning a room, they want their mother. Chelsea said that knowing these things can help children keep a good relationship between parents and children. Irma Lopez said her father was very sweet. Her mother was very opinionated, but she gave her husband respect and authority. Christele Boyadjian said that in each family there is a dynamic that children learn to navigate and it makes each family unique. It depends on the family. There is a difference between submission and strength. Jill Judd said that men and women are different enough to need each other and alike enough to love each other. Each coin has two sides. We need to deal with the fact that we need each other. Megan said she had an experience as a Relief Society president in a singles ward where she had problems that she couldn’t solve. The bishop told her to work with the Elders Quorum president, whom she did not get along with. It was a learning experience for her to learn to work with him. She ended with a quote by Neal A. Maxwell who said that when the final history of mankind is reviewed the real meaning will have come from what is done in homes and not in Congress.

Lesson for October 26, 2014

Today our lesson was given by Kristine Hanson on “The Sacrament: A Renewal for the Soul.” Our lesson goes with our Sunday School lesson. Sister Esplin was asked by some young women what she wished she had known at their age. She said if she were to answer that she should know about the Atonement and the Savior. Kristine said she had to think about that and wished she had been assigned this lesson thirty years ago. She went on lds.org to see about ordinances. There are two kinds: Saving ordinances (baptism, confirmation, ordination, endowment, sealing) and non-saving ordinances (blessing babies, sacrament, father’s blessings, patriarchal blessings, dedication of graves). She realized the sacrament are such all-encompassing ordinances. In a lifetime we would take it about 3,360 times in 70 years. We first have faith, repent, get baptized and then we take the sacrament and the promise of having the Holy Ghost with us always. It is a renewing ordinance. Sometimes we think of the sacrament as a preliminary thing, because it is before the talks. She had a bishop have the sacrament at the end and had a speaker come in and speak about the Atonement first. The Savior chose two universal symbols: bread and water. If we had enough bread and water it would sustain us for a long time. Just as we need basic food every day, we need to remember weekly. Katie Smith read a quote by Elder Holland, every human will be resurrected, but our exaltation, through repentance. Meagan also read about the water and its symbolism as the water washes away our sins. We were bought with a price, just as every ordinance focuses on Christ’s Atonement and sacrifice. The sacrament focuses on the symbolism of Christ’s Atonement. Sister Esplin said to listen to the prayers.. Kristine said the priests in our ward are saying the prayers with more feeling than they used to. In the scriptures, the prayers are in two places. In the prayer on the bread, it mentions in the name of Christ first and to sanctify us. So the bread is holy and by eating it we become sanctified. It is to our souls, not just our spirits. We are supposed to witness and remember that we are willing to take upon us the name of Christ. We demonstrate that we are willing through our actions. Missionaries wear name tags with the name of Jesus Christ on them and are representatives, but we can also be representatives of Christ by how we live. One sister said her cousin is on a mission in Korea and someone said she looked like Jesus. Alma said have you taken his image in our countenances. In the prayers we witness of our obedience. In the blessing on the water, the water represents His blood and we are to remember and witness that we will always have the Holy Ghost to be with us. Sister Ransom’s sister said that in comparing the two prayers that in the second prayer there is no willingness any more, but doing. Sister Esplin said we should recommit to our convenants. Jessica Lewis read a quote that the Spirit of the Lord does not dwell in unclean vessels. How grateful we are that we can be periodically cleansed of our sins by taking the sacrament. When we renew our covenants in this way, the Lord can renew the cleansing effect of the baptism. If we sin, it is not all over. Elder Melving J. Ballard said who is there among us who does not wound our spirits. We do things for which we are sorry and we must repent, put ourselves in proper condition and then take the sacrament to heal the wounds of our spirits. Rachel Hickman remembers going to the temple for the first time and remembers being clean as an adult and knowing what a precious gift. She went on a mission and thinking she were as clean. She was sitting in church and realized she could be that clean every week. She wondered why she hadn’t realized that before, but there is a time when things connect. She knows she can be clean every week if we sincerely repent. We can also be strengthened by the sacrament. A young woman focused on her repentance and the sacrament prayers each week and started feeling sad that she kept making the same mistakes. She realized that she wasn’t taking advantage of the Atonement. She felt strengthened and was able to feel joy. Sometimes we may wonder if we are worthy to take the sacrament. When we desire to improve and have no restrictions, we are worthy to take the sacrament. The part in the prayer about always remembering the Savior. Meagan said that she includes the Savior in all her busyness and feels strengthened. Amy Young said that life is a bunch of choices and what choices we make define us. Dana Smith said she always listens to hymns on her days off. Vira Bahr said she works with people all day and she notices that how she treats others is affected by how well she remembers the Savior. She tries to behave to others like the Savior would. Kristine said we can view others as how they represent the Lord to us. Aaronic holders represent the Savior as they perform their duties. Through them we have gifts of repentance and hope. Margaret said that when the young men perform their duties carefully and with the Spirit. A man asked his disabled father why he went to Church and the father said it was the sacrament. Let us all think of the sacrament that way.

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Lesson for October 19, 2014

Lesson for October 19, 2014 Today our lesson was given by Maggie Kopp about “Prayer: A Commandment and a Blessing.” Maggie shared a video of good will in New York and what prayer means to a woman. President Monson quoted the scripture that tells how God knows the prayers of our hearts. This woman had been taught by the missionaries and lost touch with them. She prayed that the missionaries would find her. She saw them in her apartment building and she told them to come in, because she was waiting for them. She said that prayer has helped her be more humble and know when to help someone else. She said that God rescued her through prayer. President Monson said that prayer is the passport of peace and the provider of answers. Miracles are wrought through prayer. Maggie focused on quotes by a 1968 talk by Elder Didier: Prayer is what we need, not something God needs. Prayer is not for us to tell God Hid business, but for us to learn ours. We need the guidance of the Holy Spirit and have our minds quickened by the Holy Spirit. How does prayer help us? It humbles us. Kristine Hanson said it is a boon that unites our will with God’s, so we know what to seek. Emily Campbell said it helps us be heard and feel like we’re being heard. Prayer also helps us to understand things better than we would have. Heavenly Father knows us better than our friends. Jenni Harker said it makes us feel empowered, because there are things we can’t do ourselves that we are helped to do. Sister Bahr said it is a daily communication with someone we love and trust, so it is sacred. Katie said that prayer is comforting and even if she’s not sure what to do, she feels better. Maggie said it changes our attitudes. Emily Campbell said it helps her realize it is not entirely her husband’s fault. Adele Hickman said it helped her realize that God loves her son more than she does and knows what will help him. Kristine Hanson said it helps us feel gratitude and not feel sorry for ourselves. Jessica Lewis said she’s been focusing on true communication and it helps her be able to keep her will more in line with her Father’s will by focusing on what He wants her to do, rather than what she wants. JFS said we should pour out our hearts in gratitude. Irma Lopez said to start prayers with gratitude and giving thanks. Jessica Lewis felt like she needed to get up early to be alone with the Lord. She got the revelation that she needed to focus on gratitude to help her. Maggie asked if we had ever made a gratitude list. One sister said she’s been keeping a prayer journal and she gets a lot of support. Another sister said she kept a gratitude journal and she read it over and saw that when she was especially grateful, she received blessings. Taking the time to think about prayer beforehand helps her thank God for the things she hasn’t received yet, things that she would have asked for and it was an amazing experience. Others also bore their testimonies about teaching our children to pray and being grateful. It changes our actions, too. We should not pray merely with our lips, but express our prayers by how we live. We should put our actions in harmony with our desires. Megan Miller said she gets the most out of her prayers when she is specific. One sister told of an experience where she and her husband had taken the time to pray for him. Everything went wrong that day, but by the time she got home that night, it had all worked out. Linda Campbell said she gets very specific in her prayers for her grandchildren. Our actions show that we have a relationship with our Father. Through our prayers, He wants to build our testimonies, so often He keeps up with His end of the bargain, even if we are not so good at it. Megan Miller said she tries to make things happen with Heavenly Father and she finally realized that she needs to pray for what the Lord wants and things will be taken care of when the Lord wants it to. Our prayers help us learn to trust. In 1919, JFS mentioned the D&C scripture about the season of prayer. He said it is all the time, not just when we go to bed. We are all in our own seasons, but we all need to pray all the time. Maggie said that the seasons of our lives and the seasons of our prayers overlap. Prayer helps us with whatever circumstances we are in. Let us improve our prayers.

Lesson for October 12, 2014

Today our lesson was given by Megan Miller on “Proclaiming the Gospel to the World.” She shared a clip from Elder Bednar’s conference talk about his two sons, one of which was injured and then treated kindly by his brother, who soaped up and scrubbed the injury and covered the younger brother with bandaids. The injured brother gathered up ointment and bandages and shared with his friends. The older brother loved his brother and wanted to care for him and then the little one wanted to share with those he loved. In order to share the gospel, we need a testimony, we need to be willing to serve, we need to listen to see where there is trouble or need. It is important to have good relationships with people so they know we like them and they can be comfortable with them. Sometimes people are curious about the gospel and are not ready to be baptized. Sometimes the timing has to be right. The D&C says that before we preach the word, we must learn the word first. As we are with our children and teaching them, we are involved in missionary work. Then, not only are we doing missionary work with our children, they can share the gospel, too. We can decorate our homes so they reflect our involvement with the gospel. In 1 Nephi 11:16-17 it is about the angel telling Nephi about the tree of life. The angel asks a question and Nephi doesn’t know, but he says he does know that God loves His children. He testifies first about what he does know and then says he doesn’t know the answer. So we might not know everything, but we are willing to find out the answer. Our children and friends need to know that there may be a lack of knowledge and there may be disagreement, but that’s all right. You can still love each other and you can find things out. We don’t always see the fruits of our labors, but we can help people take the first steps. Sue Ann Harding tried to share the gospel with a woman who was experiencing problems. The woman did not accept, but she was still friendly. We ran out of time before we could read from the manual, but we had a really good lesson with people who shared.

Ward Halloween Party, Wed. October 22, 2014

The ward Halloween party will be Wednesday, October 22 at 6:30 and will include a dinner, games, and costume contest (No masks or gore). If your last name starts with the letter A-J, please bring a salad or side dish. If K-Z, please bring a dessert. On Wednesday, October 29, the your will come to your home trick-or-treating for donations to Deseret Industries. Please have items on your front porch before 6 p.m.

Lesson for Sept. 28, 2014

Our lesson today was given by Kristine Hanson, Chapter 20 “Love and Concern for All Our Father’s Children” from President Monson’s April Conference talk “ Love—the Essence of the Gospel.” When we think of this title, we think of the atonement and charity, the pure love of Christ, God is love, the love that we have to have for ourselves and those around us, friendliness, it is life-giving, it is the first and second great commandments—the love of the Father and the Son. The fact that we are born into families is to help us to learn to live in love and to give love. President Monson points out that if we don’t love God if we don’t love our neighbor. Loving our fellow man is based on the understanding that we are all God’s children and brothers and sisters. President Kimball said that the individuals we meet in parking lots and elevators are our brothers and sisters. This love is manifest through kindness, friendliness, forgiveness, protection, service, not judging, acceptance, forgetting, charity, giving time, listening, patience, donating, trusting, keeping confidences, sharing talents, times, food, longsuffering, sacrifice, enduring to the end, trying to understand, empathy, hoping for the best, having faith they will, teaching, encouragement, benign assumption, and acting on promptings. Have you ever regretted being a little too kind? Kristine said she regrets not contacting a friend whom she had wanted to talk to for a long time, but hadn’t done it. Her friend died in her sleep recently and the woman’s husband said the friend had been troubled recently. Kristine thought maybe she might have actually helped by listening. President Monson had stories in his talk. One was about a flight that went out of its way from Juneau, Alaska to take care of a little boy who had fallen on glass and severed an artery. The passengers all agreed that it was a worthwhile thing to go out of their way and after they let the little boy off, they found out the boy was going to be all right. The passengers took up a collection for the family and cheered. President Monson also told of a woman who gave up her pay to help a young woman in 1933 with the sewing in a factory that was too hard for the young woman. They remained friends and in the 1950s, the older woman gave the younger one a Book of Mormon and in 1960, the younger one was baptized with her family. One sister said that her husband was a home teacher and every week went out to teach a man who lived 25 miles out of town, until he finally, a year and a half later, came back to church. Kristine said in her family a great-grandfather was called on a mission while he had a wife and small children. He worked hard to put up food to keep his family safe while he was gone. After he left, someone stole the food. She could see the track in the snow, but they couldn’t find out who did it. They were devastated, but family stepped in to help. When the husband came back from his mission and became bishop, a man came to him and said he knew who it was. The bishop said he didn’t want to know, because he’d already forgiven the robber. The son, Kristine’s Uncle Wilford was a bishop, too, found out who was the robber was and sat with the man while he died. Kristine’s uncle (age 11) was killed accidentally by a rifle bullet. The little boy who had pulled the trigger cried. They boy’s father started to scold him, but Kristine’s grandmother said it was an accident and not to scold the boy. They had the boy sit between Kristine’s grandparents during the funeral and for many years showed that boy love and help. When asked if they would sue, the grandmother said that money couldn’t be piled high enough to compensate for the loss of love between her and the offending boy’s mother. Kristine challenged everyone to go home and tell a family member that they are loved. Love really is the way of happiness.

Lesson for August 31, 2014

Lesson for August 31, 2014 Today our lesson was about President Uchtdorf’s talk, “Grateful in Any Circumstances.” Our lesson was given by Kristine Hanson. For some our burdens are joyful, such as raising small children. For some, our burdens are more worrisome with illness, finances, loved ones, careers, etc. President Uchtdorf said we are unique, but there is something we can do to make our lives more joyful and that is to be more grateful. Kristine said that her roommate, Kathy, does not allow her to pity herself. Kathy said she can see and walk and is not in a concentration camp. So Kristine has to pity herself in secret. President Uchtdorf said there is a difference between being thankful for things and being thankful IN our circumstances. Kristine said that when she was a new professor, she was in charge of the grad students who taught freshman English. One woman in particular had terrible troubles, an ill child, a husband who cheated on her and other things, as well. She had such a positive attitude that she succeeded, got a master’s, a Phd, and a full-time job at BYU. Even as her son died, she remained positive. She truly put aside the bottle of bitterness and drank from the goblet of gratitude. Others in the class told of people they know who have been in difficult circumstances and are still grateful. President Uchtdorf said that gratitude can gentle our troubles and give us better perspective. Being grateful doesn’t mean that we don’t see our problems, but we can see beyond them to the promises the Lord has made to us. We are commanded to be grateful. Commandments are opportunities to receive blessings, so being grateful we can experience true joy. True gratitude is an expression of hope and testimony. Adele Hickman said her friend died last week, because she took care of her paralyzed husband for twenty years and yet was the kindest person. Laura said her husband’s grandmother used to say, “This too shall pass.” We don’t need to see the Savior to see the bright future that the Redeemer of the world has in store for us. Two weeks ago, Kristine extended a challenge to feel gratitude any time we wanted to complain. She used to be a real complainer. Her mother used to say to her “You’d complain if you were going to be hanged with a new rope.” She has one negative thought that was a habit and she tried to think of a grateful thought instead and she found it helped. Dorothy Davis said that this last week, she was slightly upset with her husband and she replace it with the thought that she was grateful he had not died of the heart attack he had several years ago. Margaret Cook said her husband was ill for over two years and he kept saying, “I am so sorry.” She was glad she was able to care for him. When he died, his family was around him and they decided not to grieve, but to rejoice and they had the best funeral. Jessica Lewis said that her daughter had three recitals in a two-week period and by the time Jessica was through, she was so tired with carting around the family to lessons in American Fork. She was reminded that she had committed to be grateful and she was overwhelmed with the feeling that she is blessed to be physically able and have a good family. Linda Campbell has had a hard time at the Scera Shell, but she has told the crew that they have been good, except one who has been a pain. Heather Cantrell has had a hard time, but people are helping her out with poems. Linda Harker said people have really heavy burdens, and they should let people help carry your through them. Sister Bahr said she had a trial with a teenager, but she knew she could not handle it by herself and so she prayed about it. A friend came to see her and they shared the problem. The friend had gone through the same thing and gave her good ideas, including a DVD to watch, and things have worked out much better than she thought. She knows the Lord answered her prayer for help. It is important for us to share with our friends. Laura Campbell said she had read the talk before and felt it strengthened her testimony so much. Audrey said that being cheerful and grateful rubs off on others. It’s contagious. We are lifted by those who is in a good mood. For a year-and-a-half Kristine was the dressing room coordinator at the temple and had to stay very late until all patrons had gone. One night she got a note on her car from some Young Women who had visited the temple and put thank you notes on all the cars. The note said, “Thank you for your service.” It lifted her. Bonnie said she had an amazing experience. Her husband has had several surgeries and a son who is bed-ridden. She was playing the jewel matching game and she felt that someone had been praying for her. Suddenly on the screen, she got the message that she had won every level and she felt like she had won every level in the game of life. Kristine’s mother raised nine children with never enough money and she sang through her work. She often expressed gratitude. When she was dying of a brain tumor, she always thanked the nurses, even though she was in a lot of pain. She never complained, but had a beautiful attitude. President Uchtdorf quoted the scripture that said that the things of the earth shall be added to those who are grateful. Kristine prays that we will always have a grateful heart and have our burdens lightened.

Lesson for August 31, 2014

Lesson for August 31, 2014 Today our lesson was about President Uchtdorf’s talk, “Grateful in Any Circumstances.” Our lesson was given by Kristine Hanson. For some our burdens are joyful, such as raising small children. For some, our burdens are more worrisome with illness, finances, loved ones, careers, etc. President Uchtdorf said we are unique, but there is something we can do to make our lives more joyful and that is to be more grateful. Kristine said that her roommate, Kathy, does not allow her to pity herself. Kathy said she can see and walk and is not in a concentration camp. So Kristine has to pity herself in secret. President Uchtdorf said there is a difference between being thankful for things and being thankful IN our circumstances. Kristine said that when she was a new professor, she was in charge of the grad students who taught freshman English. One woman in particular had terrible troubles, an ill child, a husband who cheated on her and other things, as well. She had such a positive attitude that she succeeded, got a master’s, a Phd, and a full-time job at BYU. Even as her son died, she remained positive. She truly put aside the bottle of bitterness and drank from the goblet of gratitude. Others in the class told of people they know who have been in difficult circumstances and are still grateful. President Uchtdorf said that gratitude can gentle our troubles and give us better perspective. Being grateful doesn’t mean that we don’t see our problems, but we can see beyond them to the promises the Lord has made to us. We are commanded to be grateful. Commandments are opportunities to receive blessings, so being grateful we can experience true joy. True gratitude is an expression of hope and testimony. Adele Hickman said her friend died last week, because she took care of her paralyzed husband for twenty years and yet was the kindest person. Laura said her husband’s grandmother used to say, “This too shall pass.” We don’t need to see the Savior to see the bright future that the Redeemer of the world has in store for us. Two weeks ago, Kristine extended a challenge to feel gratitude any time we wanted to complain. She used to be a real complainer. Her mother used to say to her “You’d complain if you were going to be hanged with a new rope.” She has one negative thought that was a habit and she tried to think of a grateful thought instead and she found it helped. Dorothy Davis said that this last week, she was slightly upset with her husband and she replace it with the thought that she was grateful he had not died of the heart attack he had several years ago. Margaret Cook said her husband was ill for over two years and he kept saying, “I am so sorry.” She was glad she was able to care for him. When he died, his family was around him and they decided not to grieve, but to rejoice and they had the best funeral. Jessica Lewis said that her daughter had three recitals in a two-week period and by the time Jessica was through, she was so tired with carting around the family to lessons in American Fork. She was reminded that she had committed to be grateful and she was overwhelmed with the feeling that she is blessed to be physically able and have a good family. Linda Campbell has had a hard time at the Scera Shell, but she has told the crew that they have been good, except one who has been a pain. Heather Cantrell has had a hard time, but people are helping her out with poems. Linda Harker said people have really heavy burdens, and they should let people help carry your through them. Sister Bahr said she had a trial with a teenager, but she knew she could not handle it by herself and so she prayed about it. A friend came to see her and they shared the problem. The friend had gone through the same thing and gave her good ideas, including a DVD to watch, and things have worked out much better than she thought. She knows the Lord answered her prayer for help. It is important for us to share with our friends. Laura Campbell said she had read the talk before and felt it strengthened her testimony so much. Audrey said that being cheerful and grateful rubs off on others. It’s contagious. We are lifted by those who is in a good mood. For a year-and-a-half Kristine was the dressing room coordinator at the temple and had to stay very late until all patrons had gone. One night she got a note on her car from some Young Women who had visited the temple and put thank you notes on all the cars. The note said, “Thank you for your service.” It lifted her. Bonnie said she had an amazing experience. Her husband has had several surgeries and a son who is bed-ridden. She was playing the jewel matching game and she felt that someone had been praying for her. Suddenly on the screen, she got the message that she had won every level and she felt like she had won every level in the game of life. Kristine’s mother raised nine children with never enough money and she sang through her work. She often expressed gratitude. When she was dying of a brain tumor, she always thanked the nurses, even though she was in a lot of pain. She never complained, but had a beautiful attitude. President Uchtdorf quoted the scripture that said that the things of the earth shall be added to those who are grateful. Kristine prays that we will always have a grateful heart and have our burdens lightened.

Ogden Temple Rededication September 21

Join us as we gather in our chapel to view the Ogden Temple rededication on September 21. This session is for those with temple recommends. Bring a white handkerchief.

Stake Conference September 14

Our stake conference will be on September 14 in our stake center.

Fireside for Members with Disabilities Aug. 24, 2014

Please come to the fireside for members with disabilities and also those who participate in special needs mutual (SNM). It will take place on Sunday, August 24, 2014 at 5:00 p.m. at the Windsor Chapel, 1405 N. Main St. in Orem. Sunday dress. All are invited, especially families with special needs members, and stake and ward leaders with special needs members in their organizations. Leaders will be available to answer questions. Refreshments will be served.

Lesson for August 17, 2014

Today our lesson was about being in the world, but not of it . It was given by Megan Miller. Our teacher asked about what makes us a peculiar people. We think we are different. We have a fullness of the gospel. We are centered on family. We have been purchased and need to be humble, so we are a treasured gift because we follow Jesus Christ. We value other religions. We do work for the dead. We have covenants and ordinances. We have a lay ministry. We have standards that are different from the world. We value work. We are striving to be like Christ. Megan asked how keeping the Sabbath day holy has changed us. Laura Card said she never did work or homework on Sunday all through her master’s and PhD and kept the Sabbath for church work and family and everything fell into place. Amy Young said that she thinks that by going to church and taking the sacrament keeps us on track for the rest of the week. Sueann Harding and her husband went camping one weekend and her sister said to bring her Sunday clothes. They went to a little ward and it turned out to be a singles ward. So the family passed the sacrament and said the prayers and it was very spiritual. Barbara Aldridge said her husband wears Sunday clothes even when he has to work at a grungy job on Sundays. Vira Bahr said we should think of what we can do on the Sabbath and not what we can’t do on the Sabbath, so we can give direction to our families. Megan said her family turned dressing up for Sunday into dressing up as scripture characters and the kids loved it. It really is based on each of us and the spirit we bring into the Sabbath. Shanacy said each family is different and needs to decide on how they are going to keep the Sabbath day holy and how we honor the Sabbath. Megan went through the pamphlet “For the Strength of Youth” and found all the parts of the lesson. It said to prepare during the week to keep the Sabbath day holy. Emily Campbell grew up in a Jewish community on Long Island and noticed all the little picky rules and loopholes. She learned that it is the spirit of the law and not the minutia. Switching to the Word of Wisdom we learn that we need to keep our bodies and minds clean. If we do what we should, we will be healthier. Young sister Harker said her husband is a physician and he said if everyone kept the Word of Wisdom he would be out of a job. Another sister said that keeping the Word of Wisdom while growing up outside Utah helped her stay healthy while she watched other girls have health problems. Elder Uchtdorf said that sometimes the benefits of keeping the commandments are not apparent until later. The Lord will give us what we need when we need it. Sister Bahr said that when she learned about the Word of Wisdom before she was baptized, she realized what a blessing it is as she has grown older. You can see in society how debilitating these broken commandments are. Sister Cantrell said that if we obey the law, we will receive benefits, even if we do have some health problems, over the long haul. Sister Campbell said we have to realize that we live in a terrestrial world, so there are many things that can go wrong for us. Spencer W. Kimball was under anesthesia and heard an orderly swear and use the name of the Lord in vain. President Kimball said he loves that person more than anything in the world and the man apologized. The last is to dress modestly. In the pamphlet, it says never lower our standards or use special occasions to justify. We dress modestly because of who we are, not because of what others will think or do. Elder Earl Tingey said he went to Ghana and told him what the church and what we could do for them and an official said we don’t have anything better than others. Then he pulled out the pamphlet and the official was amazed that our youth would adhere. Why do we do all these principles? These are good things to think about. It comes from who we are and we show that by how we live. We are not better, except that the Lord has asked us to be better.

Activity Tuesday, August 19

Join with the sisters this Tuesday evening for a fun activity.

Lesson for July 20, 2014

Lesson for July 20, 2014 Today our lesson was given by Megan Miller on Chapters 15 and 17 on “Eternal Marriage” and “Sealing Power and Temple Blessings.” President Smith said there is no ordinance more necessary than eternal marriage. It is the most important because it works the hardest to perfect you. Part of being exalted. It’s the start of everything, the family, an eternal bond between partners. It is a good way to become like Christ. It is one of our jobs to bring spirits into the world. All faithful women will have the opportunity. D&C 131:1-4 says that there are three heavens or degrees and to enter into the highest, we must be married and sealed in the temple. We need someone else to make it to the highest. Some of the blessings include balance. As a child there is comfort and surety being raised in such a family. We get companionship, friendship, a partner raising children. Support and love. Marriage is not just a civil contract—it is in fact, an eternal principle—so much more than how the world views. The world sees it as disposable. If it becomes difficult, people get divorced or the marriage annulled. It is not just two people’s paychecks. A lot of people see it as convenience and a tax benefit. There is no real commitment or effort required. An eternal marriage is something solid in life. It requires sacrifice and a focus on our partners. President Hinckley said that a sacrifice is giving up something good for something better. The knowledge that we have an eternal marriage brings with it more responsibility. The person who lives worthy to marry in the temple commits to that marriage long before that marriage takes place, so an eternal marriage actually starts early in life. In the story of Adam and Eve, there was no second wife created. There was permanence. Some things to do to preserve our marriages is to wear our garments and wear them worthily. Emily Campbell said that her friends are getting divorced and it has upset her own children, so it has had an effect on her family. It is important to always have each other’s back and support each other no matter what. It is important in our own marriage to not compare our marriage with others’ marriage because we only see the good side. It is important to pray together. It is important to realize that in a relationship, we only have control over one person in our marriage. If you want to be like Christ and you try to be like Him, it makes all the difference. It is important to teach children the difference and how to be Christlike. How can we share the message with the world? Not hide that it is hard work and it is a covenant, but that we can be successful. One of the biggest selling point of the Church is eternal families. Even though many people are married until death, they really believe that their marriages will be eternal. The way you draw closer to someone is through service. Family scripture study and companion study is important and so is individual study. You can draw closer to God through having children. Having opportunities to forgive and be forgiven can also draw couples closer together. It’s good to know that someone loves us enough not to write us off. We have to learn how to navigate our relationship with our spouse just as we have to learn to navigate our relationship with God. Those who do not marry in this life and who live worthy of the temple covenants will reap the blessings of the temple covenants. The best explanation Charlene Farnworth heard a temple sealer saying that covenants must be kept in order for the sealing to take place. By keeping an eternal perspective, we know that this life is a temporary situation that is not fair and we know that in the eternities all will be made fair, even though we can’t figure it out now. Knowing that we belong to something bigger than we are will give us comfort. One way to understand the bigger picture is to do family history and temple ordinances for our ancestors so we can see that we belong to something bigger than ourselves. We can share doing indexing and family history with our children. Our testimony of the Savior will be deepened and we will be safeguarded, according to Elder Bednar.

Lesson for July 13, 2014

Lesson for July 13, 2014 Today our lesson was given by Maggie Kopp about two chapters: Baptism and The Gift of the Holy Ghost. We know that the first and second ordinances of the gospel are baptism and the gift of the Holy Ghost, but the things that stood out to Maggie, were the first things we should know about baptism. She remembers her interview and being able to answer all the questions. Another sister remembers being all in white and looking in the mirror and feeling strong and excited to be part of the gospel. President Smith discussed the symbolism of baptism. Maggie divided us up into groups to discuss baptism and the symbolism associated with it. Maggie likened baptism to birth and also to death and resurrection. Some of the scriptures she referred us to were Moses 6:58-60; John 3:3-8; Romans 6:4; and Matthew 3:16-17. Some of the things we thought of were that we are being born into the kingdom of God, no matter what age we are. Once a child is born it becomes separate from the mother and once a person is baptized he/she is accountable for their own sins. Once a person is baptized, he/she takes on Christ’s identity. Sister Davis’s son thought the word accountable sounded like “a cannibal” and he didn’t want to do that. Baptism is a symbol of rebirth, or resurrection as the baptized person becomes a new person with a new life. We bury our old life and leave it behind so we can take part in our new life. As we look back on our own baptism, we’ve learned to keep covenants. Emily Campbell said they taught their children leading up to baptism just like a new convert would be taught so it could be their choice. We need to mention the gift of the Holy Ghost, because we learn so much once we have that gift. We don’t have to know everything about the gospel and that we are willing to commit to learning more after baptism. The basic testimony and commitment are what are necessary and will carry us through. Sister Aldridge said she has learned that she can start fresh each week by taking the sacrament. Maggie’s grandpa said that he remembered being baptized and after he accidentally ripped his pants and swore and thought he’d messed up his baptism. So because babies are sinless, it really seems odd to baptize children. President Smith said that it was a vision that gave the church the idea that eight was the proper age. Amy Young said we need to teach kids that we are all trying and making mistakes and that they can repent and take the sacrament to make themselves clean again. Also, that Jesus is waiting for them to come back to them. We covenant to keep the commandments and we would prove to God that we are willing to live by the word of God with humility and diligence. Sister Cantrell said that the most important thing is to remember that we can always have the Spirit to be with us if we keep the commandments. Sister Harding said we need to be good representatives of Christ and good examples. Do we have the Holy Spirit with us and being Christ-like. Maggie said that our baptismal covenants are indicative of being saved by works and grace of the Atonement. Our baptism is incomplete unless we receive the Holy Ghost. We can do lots of things and not receive the Holy Ghost, unless we are blessed by the gift. Joseph Smith said that baptizing someone without giving them the gift of the Holy Ghost was as effective as baptizing a bag of sand. We should focus on receiving and keeping the Holy Spirit with us at all times and that includes all the things we should do to keep the gospel in remembrance and at the forefront of our thoughts. All the things we do should be to keep the Holy Ghost and having the Holy Ghost with us helps us do the thing we should, so it’s kind of like an endless loop. Sister Lewis said that when we receive revelation, we need to act on it so the Lord knows we value revelation and then we can ask for more. Sister Boyadjian said it is the verb to act and to do. It is as if are drive the car and we can see the road, but if we do not act upon the appropriate rules of driving, we will crash. Sister Cantrell said we need to pray always and the Lord will direct us. We need to do the work so we can get the promptings to make right choices. Gratitude is a key to having revelation in our life. President Smith said it is the privilege of every member to know the truth and gain the light.

July 6, 2014 lesson

Lesson for 6 July 2014 Today our lesson was taught by Irma Lopez, titled “Sisterhood, O How We Need Each Other.” Irma showed us the video that went with Sister Oscarson’s conference talk about how important it is to share ourselves with other sisters in the gospel. In the video several groups of sisters of all ages from all over the Church sang, “I Am A Child of God.” Irma asked Amy Young to share her experience of being in the Conference Center and Amy said it was amazing. Irma said it is our privilege to be women in the Church and to belong to that society that is a great force for goodness. Heather Cantrell read a quote about the international nature of our society. Irma said it is magical that we all belong to the same society. No matter where we go in the world, we have a home in a ward or branch where the lessons and the doctrine and the meetings are the same. Emily Campbell said she doesn’t bicker with us like she did with her sisters, but we are sisters. Many sisters in the ward said we all feel like sisters. We are all going through different stages and different ages, so no matter where we come from or what part of life we’re in, we can all be sisters and have beautiful friendships. Irma said she came into our ward 21 years ago, from a ward where her best friend was in Relief Society. She is still her good friend. She is available to Irma for prayers and encouragement and to talk to when she has problems. Bonnie said she lived in Cleveland, Ohio and had lots of friends, but she felt she needed a special friend. She prayed for a friend and Michelle moved into the ward, but her husband was immediately transferred. She is still Bonnie’s good friend. Irma said the adversary is always telling us we are not good enough, instead of saying that we have wonderful traits. She pointed out that we should not compare ourselves to others, but learn new things. Sister Bahr read a quote about not judging ourselves, but seeing ourselves with compassion and recognize our divine background. Our desire is to lift up one another and serve one another. Irma said we need to help people as sisters. Emily Campbell said that women have a biological need to connect with other women. Barbara Aldridge said sometimes only a woman can understand another woman. Only a woman will get it. Irma said she asked several women who they go to when they have problems. Many said their sisters, or another woman friend. Some said Heavenly Father and then another woman. Jessica Lewis said that when we were baptized we covenanted to take on each others’ burdens. Sister Oscarson in her talk said we need to rely on each other. She told of a little girl named Sarah and went with her mother to help another little girl who had multiple sclerosis. She learned to be compassionate and caring for another. Another story she told about the relationship between Mary and Elizabeth as they supported one another through their pregnancies—old and young who strengthened each other. Amy Young said she has met sisters in every situation in life through visiting teaching, and these women are her friends still. They have given her wonderful advice and she has wonderful friendships through visiting teaching. Irma said we have much to contribute to each other. Heather said she has a friend who is a Methodist, but she was gathered in by the local Relief Society who helped her through an illness 24 hours a day for two years. Sister Oscarson’s mother walked to church on her own as a child because she had Primary teachers who loved her. Another story is about an 81 year old sister who was called to be a MIA Maid advisor and who brought wisdom and love to the girls and the girls helped her. Irma asked how we can include the young women to get them to see that Relief Society is for them, too. In one ward, they included the younger sisters once a month. Sister Campbell said we need to include them. One young sister said she wanted to join Relief Society from the time she turned 18 and she thinks she liked going to activities with the Relief Society. Sometimes it would be good to recognize the young women and say hello to them and invite them to sit with us. We can find out what is going on in the high school, so we can tell the youth that we saw them. Sister Oscarson said we have each other and are rich in connections so we can nurture and serve each other.

RS activity for July--Canyon Activity

July 15th! Join us for the July activity up the canyon. You do not want to miss this activity! We will have fun together, along with a campfire and s'mores, although you can bring other desserts, too. Meet in the church parking lot at 5:45 to carpool up.

Lesson for June 8, 2014

Today our lesson was given by Maggie Kopp on “Our Search for Truth.” She said her profession as a librarian makes her very sensitive to seeking truth. Her husband said, “It’s kind of hard not to be Mormon and know learning is important.” She asked who is learning something new. Sister Farnworth said she is taking a new math class. Another sister said she is taking birthing classes. Another sister is taking an art history class and a family class. Sister Campbell is taking neurology through. Sister Lewis said you can find God in anything you study, from history to how to make sourdough. She says not to separate church stuff from other stuff. Emily Campbell said science is how people try to codify what God has always known. Maggie said that Chieko Okasaki taught an important lesson on the relationship between study and faith, citing the scriptures that tell us to study out of the best books. Maggie asked us what studying the body has to do with faith. We are created by God in His image. We breathe and our hearts beat on their own. Sister Linda Campbell said when she taught health and went to BYU to see the cadavers, it was an eye opener to her to see the systems and precise use of the body. Claudia Laycock said our bodies are our ticket back to God. Another sister said she works with people who are not healthy and that it is their challenge to work with their bodies. Emily Campbell said there are certain things you can do to make your bodies work better. We are all individuals and not all things work equally for everyone. Obviously you can’t work in the health industry on faith alone, but faith can help us to know the knowledge we have been exposed to and use it. How does the combination of study and faith work in your life? Jessica Lewis said that everything she studies strengthens her faith, but the most influential was studying herbs and how the Lord has blessed us with everything we need. There are so many things we learn on this earth that help us. Chieko Okasaki said not many of us read too much. He reiterated that learning comes by study and faith. She listened to a great talk that is listed on speeches.byu.edu about living knowledge. God uses natural laws to accomplish what He intends to happen. Heavenly Father created all of this for us. Claudia Laycock said she believes it is like the parable of the talent and we need to expand our knowledge. It’s part of what we owe God. Jessica Lewis said she has been reading a book by S. Michael Wilcox who compared us to a compass drawing a circle, with one foot in the gospel and the other searching out all truth. Another sister said that being grounded in the gospel and living it helps us filter everything we learn. Our sister missionary said that all of our learning is for our end goal, which is to become like our Father in Heaven. Maggie said the professor who spoke said that our learning is endless. Heather Cantrell said to learn about God before we can understand the rest. Chieko Okasaki said that learning by study and learning by faith cannot be separated. Maggie challenges us to learn more of God and Christ.

Lesson for May 18, 2014

Lesson for May 18, 2014 Our lesson today is about the witnesses of the Book of Mormon, lesson #9. It was given by Maggie Kopp. Today we based the lesson a lot on scriptures and quotes. The law of witnesses has always been followed by the law. Whenever the Lord has established a dispensation, more than one person was present. Linda Campbell said that we need the additional witness to help us know things are true. When Joseph Smith first had the plates, he was not supposed to tell anyone, but the Book of Mormon itself says that other witnesses would bear witness that it is true—as many witnesses as seem good to the Lord. Mary Whitmer was the first woman to have a witness of the plates. Maggie used an article written by Keith Perkins. Mary clothed and fed Joseph Smith and Emma and worked to take care of her family, as well. She was very tired, and one day was approached by a stranger who showed her the gold plates as a reward for her efforts and faithfulness. We also mentioned other women who were witnesses. Of the witnesses, 5 were Mary Whitmer’s sons, 1 was her son-in-law. In the Book of Mormon in the testimony of the Three Witnesses, we learn of the coming of an angel of the Lord who came down to show them the plates. They stated that their testimony is to the world. Claudia Laycock said that legally they covered all the elements that people would want to poke holes at: they saw the plates, they knew what was in them, and they declare their testimony. We know from the article that although most of the witnesses fell away from the Church, none ever denied their testimonies. Lucy Mack Smith said that Joseph came home weeping after the experience because a great burden had been lifted from his shoulders. He had known of the plates since he was fourteen, but had not been able to tell about them. Now there were others. It is important for those of us now, since we haven’t had this experience, to have these witnesses. Emma was never privileged to witness the gold plates. She was told to not murmur. She did have access to the plates, but she did feel them through the cloth to clean, but she did not peek. She said they were pliable like paper and rustled. She also left the church, but she told her son that she knew they were true. She acted as scribe and Joseph often just took up where he had left off and went on with no problem. She was satisfied that the Book of Mormon was true and that she didn’t need to see the plates. Sometimes we want to save the world and do important things, but what Emma was told she would do is how she helped to build the kingdom of God. So we need to find out where we need to build the kingdom. This new volume of scripture was also to be a witness to the Bible and they should grow together to the condemnation of those who do not believe. Joseph Fielding Smith said that the three witnesses bore a testimony that was true and that the Book of Mormon was translated correctly and those who desire to know can know the truth. If we read it prayerfully and carefully, we can also have a testimony from a daily habit of reading the scriptures and building the habit of keeping the scriptures in our lives. Various sisters told of how they gained their testimonies. Some said it was gradual and some said it was an answer to prayer. We all have an individual personality that God knows and will help us understand these things in the best ways for us.

Lesson for 11 May 2014

Today our lesson was given by Randy Hickman on Mother’s Day, so the ladies would not have to give any lessons today. He said this is a first for him—he has never taught Relief Society. He told of going to a movie and realized he and his wife were the only white people there. He feels somewhat like that. His lesson is about “The Church and Kingdom of God.” If you have smart phones or tablets, the lessons are available. Also available are conference talks back to 1971. So we should use the technology we have to help us with the gospel. In the introduction President Joseph Fielding Smith said, at the age of 89, when he went into a meeting and fell down a flight of stairs and limped around like an old man. His leg was broken in multiple places. The reason for his dedication is that he knows that Jesus is the Christ, Joseph Smith is the prophet, and he knows it with every fiber of his being. Jeffrey R. Holland said he is more certain that the keys have been restored and the gospel than he is that he was standing there taking to everyone. Brother Hickman said he often wondered where his testimony came from. He believes that spiritual experiences are personal, but he asked if anyone wanted to share. Did anyone have an Alma the Younger or Enos experience. Crystelle Boyadjian said when the missionaries contacted her and then she went to see the prophet speak, she had a huge impression that he was the prophet. We often don’t have one single event, but thousands of little events stacked on each other. Heather Cantrell said she had experience with the devil as she was investigating the Church, and received a blessing and hasn’t had her faith waiver. Brother Hickman is a builder and thinks of a testimony like a brick mason laying bricks. When a brick mason sets up corner poles, they have to be perfectly vertical. He strings a line and slings mud on the brick, and cut a groove down the brick before putting it on the first bricks. He taps it so it’s level. Then he puts the level on the bricks and makes sure it’s really level. After about six or eight courses, he needs to check the mortar and raking the seams between bricks. The more he watches brick masons, he realizes that there is care and skill and patience to make sure each brick is laid just right. In our church, there are at least 60-70,000 bricks on the exterior. If you don’t lay the foundation of your testimony just right it won’t work as well. We will remember the effort it took to build our testimony. One small event after another are necessary to build a durable testimony, like brick on a building. Think of the bricks that built our own testimonies. Heather Cantrell said we also need a firm foundation or the bricks fall down. Brother Hickman said his bishop made him wait 3 months to get the priesthood, then he gave him the stake president as a home teaching companion, and they were to teach the bishop. His bishop was teaching him, laying bricks. Our bishop goes to visit the sick and gives blessings. Jessica Lewis said we are not given experiences just for ourselves, but to bear our testimonies rekindled and passed down. So we need to write them down so we can pass them down. Where are our testimonies and do we write them down? There is no stopping point. Now we’re all aware of where our testimonies come from, we need to write them down, and we also need to share them. President Smith said our service in the church expresses our Lord’s infinite love. It helps others as well as helps others as we serve. He also said that the man in the church who only does what is necessary is not working toward perfection. Sister Boyadjian said to know God you have to do what God does. Service is how we get to the celestial kingdom. Service is unselfishness. Never refuse to serve—President Smith is a prophet. When a presiding officer asks us to do something, we are under covenant to do so. This course brings joy and peace and those who don’t shrivel and die. Brother Hickman was asked to be the Gospel Doctrine teacher and found that he got more out of the lessons than he felt the students did. He thoroughly enjoyed it, although he felt very unprepared. He finds it interesting that service and testimony are intertwined. Something happens to you.

Relief Society activity night on May 20

Join us on May 20 at the Broughs home at 7:00 p.m.

Neighborhood Cleanup May 24

Clean up all your yard debris and get it hauled away.On May 24th starting at 9:00 a.m. have your yard debris at your curbside.

Lesson for May 4, 2014

Lesson for May 4, 2014 Our lesson today was given by Paige Gibson about this past General Conference. She asked for thoughts about conference. Sister Bahr said that if you write down questions and are prepared for them in the conference, you get more out of it. She wrote down ten questions and wrote down inspiration from the talks. She said the experience was incredible. Another sister talked about a talk by President Uchtdorf about being grateful. She feels like she’s always waiting for things, and she needs to be grateful and find joy in her current situation. Another sister went to conference and said the feeling when the prophet comes in is amazing. Just being in that atmosphere is so enriching. Paige showed a video about Jeffrey R. Holland speaking about the blessings of conference and the unique phenomenon General Conferences are. The messages are often just right for each of us. Paige said it is not always what we hear from conference that benefits us, but what we feel and take away with us. She said that we need to apply what we learn, because not applying it is like going to a feast and not eating. Sometimes if it isn’t working, it is because of opposition to what you are doing right. Sometimes we need to change our technique and take it in chunks and discuss how to apply. We have so many ways to incorporate scriptures into our lives with videos and CDs. Another sister listens to them as she gets ready for the day and she’s surprised by how much she remembers from those talks and that it is what she needs at that time. Charlene Brough said her mother keeps conference weekend is her special time. She figured out that if she took notes she remembers better. So Charlene tried to take notes and she remembered much better. She said Elder Bednar’s talk about being yoked with the Savior has helped her a lot. She has had answers to prayers because of his talk. Elder Monson’s talk also inspired her. She loved the poem that said I have wept in the night for the shortness of sight that made me a little too blind, but I never have yet felt a tinge of regret for being a little too kind. Another sister said that the conference talks are not assigned, but she is always amazed that the talks are very appropriate. She knows that President Monson does not know what the talks with be about, but he knows his people and how the Spirit will inspire the speakers to choose just what is needed. Elder Holland said that the speakers work through the Spirit and as they ponder what to talk about they pray and weep and hope. Sister Bush told of an experience in her family where they said they needed to have more discipline in their family. One of her daughters burst into tears and asked if they were going to be beaten with sticks. It led to a great discussion of obedience and discipline and one of the talks was about obedience, so she is going to use it for Family Home Evening. Sister Bahr said she is now having teenager problems, but the talks in General Conference helped her realize that some things are not so important, but some things are. Paige said that the Lord can prompt us to know what applies to our family or our situation. We will often hear things that are not actually said, but that we need. Another sister said that she heard talks about service and it made her feel like she needs to give back and do things for other people. She felt like she is blessed so much and she has so many blessings that she needs to share. Heather Cantrell said she has many fears and phobias. A talk was about overcoming fears and her husband said it is just for her. She got severe chest pains and had to go to the emergency room where she found out it was just a virus. So she feels she was able to be comforted. Paige said she has had personal messages that she has needed. Her greatest blessing is that she gets answers and that the Lord is aware of each one of us and how much we need and loves us.

Lesson for April 27, 2014 Our lesson today was given by Kristine Hanson. From Elder Bednar’s talk “Bear Up Their Burdens with Ease.” We sang an Easter/Sacrament song because Kristine feels we should celebrate Easter all month. Elder Bednar’s talk began with the story of the man who wanted a truck, took it up in the mountains to cut wood. He got stuck and decided to fill up his truck with the wood he had come for. It was the load of wood that provided the traction to get the truck out of the mud. When he got stuck, he did not sit and wait, he went to work, unlike Bill Card, who had a broken ankle and had to sit and wait for God to answer his prayers. Elder Bednar said we each carry a load made up of opportunities, responsibilities, privileges, and constraints. We need to ask ourselves if our load is the type to lead us back to God. So, children, family, church callings, talents, duties around home, are all privileges, blessings, duties, and loads that can lead us back to God. There are problems that are also loads and these can be constraints. We do want to have enough, but not to excess. We all carry a load. Often our blessings create responsibilities that are loads. Sometimes we may mistakenly believe that the absence of a load is a blessing, but this is not how we are supposed to live. Although there are some things we don’t have to carry, such as guilt, worry, comparing ourselves to others, unreal expectations, carrying grudges, fear instead of faith, remaining offended, judging others, remorse and sorrow, clutter, too many obligations and commitments. We need to have just the right weight to give us the traction we need. The Savior’s Atonement will help us carry our loads. Christ said for us to give Him our burdens and he will help us. His burden is light and easy. We often feel like we have a yoke on us, but the Savior’s yoke is easy to bear. The story of Alma and his followers and Amulon who placed great burdens on them in Mosiah 24:10-15. The people poured out their hearts to God and were answered that their burdens would be lightened and then taken away so they would know that the Lord can ease burdens and is their God and because of the covenant they had made with God. We need to be yoked with the Lord by our covenants and together we can pull much more than we might expect. Emily Campbell told us about how her covenants have helped her. She said that being yoked, we are side-by-side partners with the Lord. She said the talk related to her situation with three children with a terminal illness. The younger two are getting somewhat better, but the oldest just wants to die. The heavy load they carry helps them to know God, to know that certain things are true and to know real joy. The pain and trials have given them joy and an increased capacity beyond their normal strength. The ways you stretch and grow stay with you so you are stronger and better than you were before. It removes your focus from the world and gives you the assurance that her covenants made in the temple mean something—that she gets to keep her children. Kristine asked how covenants have helped us. Bonnie said her husband has many health problems and her oldest son has cancer. She has received a witness that these things don’t matter as long as she and her family keeps the covenants. Cyrstelle Boyadjin said she is not a humble person and can hold a grudge forever. Her parents are divorced and her stepfather was abusive. When she found the gospel, she had to get over the hate she felt for that man. After she saw him again years later and saw how sick he was from being an alcoholic, she felt free of the hate and she felt sorry for him. She felt like she was finally able to understand the covenants she had made with the Lord and the bondage she had been under. She said pride is a bondage, but we need to remember our covenants and be humble and we will be rich in blessings. She is grateful that the Lord freed her. Heather Cantrell realizes that because her son died as a drug addict, she must live the best she can and make it so she can be with her son again, who must experience the refiner’s fire. Most of us know that when we must repent, we can come clean through the Atonement, but we must also acknowledge that the Atonement is for all of us.

Lesson for April 27, 2014 Our lesson today was given by Kristine Hanson. From Elder Bednar’s talk “Bear Up Their Burdens with Ease.” We sang an Easter/Sacrament song because Kristine feels we should celebrate Easter all month. Elder Bednar’s talk began with the story of the man who wanted a truck, took it up in the mountains to cut wood. He got stuck and decided to fill up his truck with the wood he had come for. It was the load of wood that provided the traction to get the truck out of the mud. When he got stuck, he did not sit and wait, he went to work, unlike Bill Card, who had a broken ankle and had to sit and wait for God to answer his prayers. Elder Bednar said we each carry a load made up of opportunities, responsibilities, privileges, and constraints. We need to ask ourselves if our load is the type to lead us back to God. So, children, family, church callings, talents, duties around home, are all privileges, blessings, duties, and loads that can lead us back to God. There are problems that are also loads and these can be constraints. We do want to have enough, but not to excess. We all carry a load. Often our blessings create responsibilities that are loads. Sometimes we may mistakenly believe that the absence of a load is a blessing, but this is not how we are supposed to live. Although there are some things we don’t have to carry, such as guilt, worry, comparing ourselves to others, unreal expectations, carrying grudges, fear instead of faith, remaining offended, judging others, remorse and sorrow, clutter, too many obligations and commitments. We need to have just the right weight to give us the traction we need. The Savior’s Atonement will help us carry our loads. Christ said for us to give Him our burdens and he will help us. His burden is light and easy. We often feel like we have a yoke on us, but the Savior’s yoke is easy to bear. The story of Alma and his followers and Amulon who placed great burdens on them in Mosiah 24:10-15. The people poured out their hearts to God and were answered that their burdens would be lightened and then taken away so they would know that the Lord can ease burdens and is their God and because of the covenant they had made with God. We need to be yoked with the Lord by our covenants and together we can pull much more than we might expect. Emily Campbell told us about how her covenants have helped her. She said that being yoked, we are side-by-side partners with the Lord. She said the talk related to her situation with three children with a terminal illness. The younger two are getting somewhat better, but the oldest just wants to die. The heavy load they carry helps them to know God, to know that certain things are true and to know real joy. The pain and trials have given them joy and an increased capacity beyond their normal strength. The ways you stretch and grow stay with you so you are stronger and better than you were before. It removes your focus from the world and gives you the assurance that her covenants made in the temple mean something—that she gets to keep her children. Kristine asked how covenants have helped us. Bonnie said her husband has many health problems and her oldest son has cancer. She has received a witness that these things don’t matter as long as she and her family keeps the covenants. Cyrstelle Boyadjin said she is not a humble person and can hold a grudge forever. Her parents are divorced and her stepfather was abusive. When she found the gospel, she had to get over the hate she felt for that man. After she saw him again years later and saw how sick he was from being an alcoholic, she felt free of the hate and she felt sorry for him. She felt like she was finally able to understand the covenants she had made with the Lord and the bondage she had been under. She said pride is a bondage, but we need to remember our covenants and be humble and we will be rich in blessings. She is grateful that the Lord freed her. Heather Cantrell realizes that because her son died as a drug addict, she must live the best she can and make it so she can be with her son again, who must experience the refiner’s fire. Most of us know that when we must repent, we can come clean through the Atonement, but we must also acknowledge that the Atonement is for all of us.

Easter Lesson--April 20,2014

Lesson for April 20, 2014 Our lesson today is about Joseph and Hyrum Smith, Witnesses for Jesus Christ and is given by Amy Fehlberg. Something she read stuck with her—that Joseph Smith and Jesus Christ both brought about things that help people and their salvation—Jesus Christ atoned for our sins and Joseph Smith helped restore the gospel so we can benefit from the Atonement. Joseph Fielding Smith was the nephew of Joseph Smith and the grandson of Hyrum Smith. Joseph Fielding Smith learned about Joseph Smith from his father, Joseph F. Smith. Amy gained her testimony from her father who is interested in Church history. We can enjoy the blessings and benefits that are a result of Joseph Smith restoring the gospel. We can help others gain a testimony of Joseph Smith by teaching them to read the Book of Mormon, help them read Joseph Smith’s own testimony, help our children to teach each other about the Restoration. We can point out to teenagers that older people have experienced the world, but of course Joseph Smith had not yet been tainted by the world, so of course God would choose to restore the gospel through someone untainted by the world. Joseph Smith had a knowledge of the plan and the restoration by the gift of God. If we struggle with saying that we know that the gospel is true, we have a spiritual knowledge that is different from scientific knowledge. Before Joseph Smith saw God, he was a fourteen-year-old boy with only the education of about the fourth grade. But he had been taught well by his parents. If he had been educated by the world, he would no longer be innocent and have to unlearn it. Sister Bahr said it was not the learned who believed in Christ. Someone who is learned would have to unlearn the falsehoods of the world. Sister Cantrell said the Lord had judged the contents of Joseph Smith’s heart and judged him worthy to restore the gospel. Joseph Smith probably knew that who the Lord calls, He qualifies. He had to do it with the Lord’s help. In the Book of Mormon it says that the Lord will make him great. As long as we put our trust in the Lord and know he will help us do difficult things. If we are supposed to forgive seven times seventy, how many times will the Lord forgive us? Having the gospel in our lives helps us through them. We need to put our trust in the Lord so we can do all things that the Lord wants us to do. We don’t have to do it alone, as Joseph Smith had Hyrum. How do we treat our younger siblings? Hyrum was a helper to his brother, which is not often the case with older brothers. The Lord said that he loves Hyrum because of the righteousness of his heart. Hyrum had deep tenderness of heart and loved that which is right. He loved his brother better than his own life. They had been through a lot together and knew they could trust each other. Emily Campbell said that their trials and bearing each others’ burdens have made her children love each other more than she loved her siblings. God wants us to treat each other as sisters and brothers so we can have heavenly love for each other. Joseph said that Hyrum’s name would be written in the Book of the Lord as a pattern for others to follow. They supported each other. Who is our companion here on earth? The Holy Ghost, friends, families, companions, all help us, because we can’t do it alone. Joseph Smith said his testimony last of all is that Jesus Christ lives.

Lesson for April 13, 2014

Lesson for April 13, 2014 Our lesson today was given by Maggie Kopp. It is on the Significance of the Sacrament, Chapter 6. We are focusing on preparing for our Easter holiday next week. The partaking of the sacrament is one of the most sacred ordinances in the Church. We take the name of the Savior on us to stand as a witness of Him. It is a renewing of our covenants. It is a promise to always remember Him. It is a covenant to keep the commandments. Maggie wants to talk about getting ready. She experienced graduate school at a Catholic school and they tried to remember the Atonement, very seriously. What are some things we can do to remember the Atonement? How can we keep our covenants to keep the Spirit with us so we can remember? She asked when we have been prepared to keep Easter. Jill Judd said that it has helped to realize that we need it now. Singing hymns, especially sacrament hymns, makes it more special to us. When we explain it to our children, helps us understand it. Charlene Farnworth remembered a time in her mission during a political coup and when they were able to get to church in that hard time. It meant more to her. One sister had to stay in Laramie, Wyoming after doing temple work in SLC, because of a storm. On the way home on the bus they had a 3-hour sacrament meeting that left an impression. The sacrament is a special time to President Smith. Kristine Hanson sometimes re-reads the hymn just sung, sometimes she reads scriptures, sometimes she prays. Others read the sacrament prayers. Maggie loves two poems that express the meaning of the sacrament. She was given one by Eloise Bell, a professor at BYU. Paige Gibson said that to just take it and not think about it is not right, but that we need to appreciate what the sacrament means. Another poem by a woman who used to publish in the old Relief Society magazine. This one is about the effort put into the making of the bread. The things that we do with our hands for one another are a labor of love. The sacrament bread being broken feeds all of us, our brothers and sisters. President Smith said it is impossible for us to understand the extent of Christ’s sacrifice for us, but we can recognize that it was extraordinary and was taken on by His love for us. Therefore, there is nothing that the Lord asks of us that is too much for us to do. If we take the sacrament and keep the commandments and remember the Lord, we will be less likely to do something wrong. SueAnn Hardng said it is also a time for us to recommit to doing what we should. Lisa Anderson said it is a time for us to get a fresh slate. It is a time to repent and recommit. Even if we do something wrong, we can repent. There is a difference in our lives when we can. Vira Bahr said the exhibit at BYU of Carl Bloch’s paintings affected her a great deal. She loved seeing the paintings depicting the Savior’s life, because they brought His life to light. We also discussed ways to get ready for Easter, such as special food, having Easter egg hunts on Saturday, going on an Easter walk finding symbols of Christ’s resurrection. Music is a great symbol of Easter. As we are preparing for Easter, maybe we can challenge ourselves to find other things to remind us of Easter and create traditions.

Relief Society Dinner Tuesday, April 15

At 6:30 this Tuesday evening is our Relief Society dinner. Babysitting provided.

Combined meeting for Relief Society and Priesthood

We learned about missionary work and how we learn and grow in the gospel.

Lesson for March 23, 2014

Lesson for March 23, 2014 Our lesson today was given by Kristine Hanson, the Moral Force of Women. She started with a story, “ Consider now, in summary, a true story from Australian history that illustrates the power of women’s moral influence as mothers of hope, women of fidelity, wives of commitment, and nurturers of human ties. In its early decades as a British colony, Australia was a vast wilderness designated as a jail for exiled convicts. Until 1850, six of every seven people who went “down under” from Britain were men. And the few women who went were often convicts or social outcasts themselves. The men ruthlessly exploited them, sexually and in other ways. With few exceptions, these women without hope were powerless to change their conditions. In about 1840, a reformer named Caroline Chisholm urged that more women would stabilize the culture. She told the British government the best way to establish a community of “great and good people” in Australia: “For all the clergy you can dispatch, all the schoolmasters you can appoint, all the churches you can build, and all the books you can export, will never do much good without . . . ‘God’s police’-- wives and little children--good and virtuous women.” Chisholm searched for women who would raise “the moral standard of the people.” She spent twenty years traveling to England, recruiting young women and young couples who believed in the common sense principles of family life. Over time, these women tamed the men who were taming the wild land; and civil society in Australia gradually emerged. Also, the colonial governments enacted policies that elevated women’s status and reinforced family life.[23] As one historian said, “the initial reluctance of the wild colonial boys to marry was eroded fairly quickly.” Eventually, thousands of new immigrants who shared the vision of these “good and virtuous women” established stable families as the basic unit of Australian society more quickly than had occurred “anywhere else in the Western world.”[24] This striking story of women’s moral influence grew from a conscious design to replace “the penal colony’s rough and wild ways” with “a more moral civilization.” The reformers intentionally capitalized on women’s innate “civilizing” capacity. [25] These women made Australia a promised land that flowed with a healthy ecosystem of milk and honey. And the milk, literally and figuratively, was mother’s milk--the milk of human kindness. That milk nurtures those habits of the heart without which no civil society can sustain itself. Anne Summers, Damned Whores and God’s Police (Penguin Books Australia Ltd, 1975, 1994) Women have a moral force. Elder Christofferson said “Women bring with them into the world, a certain virtue, a divine gift that makes them adept at instilling such qualities as faith, courage, empathy, and refinement in relationships and in cultures.” Women exert their moral force in the home, where a father and a mother work in harmony to provide for, teach and nurture their children. A mother’s love and high expectations lead her children to act responsibly without excuses, to be serious about education and personal development, and to make ongoing contributions to the well-being of all around them. “Most sacred is a woman’s role in the creation of life. . . . As grandmothers, mothers, and role models, women have been the guardians of the wellspring of life, teach each generation the importance of sexual purity—of chastity before marriage and fidelity within marriage. In this way, they have been a civilizing influence in society; they have brought out the best in men; they have perpetuated wholesome environments in which to raise and secure healthy children.” Kristine told about her aunt whose funeral she just attended, whose family all gathered around the grave site and were examples of the influence she had on her family. Some of us feel the influence of our mothers even after they have gone to the other side. “A pernicious philosophy that undermines women’s moral influence is the devaluation of marriage and of motherhood and homemaking as a career. Some view homemaking with outright contempt, arguing it demeans women and that the relentless demands of raising children are a form of exploitation. . . There is no superior career, and no amount of money, authority, or public acclaim can exceed the ultimate rewards of family. Whatever else a woman may accomplish, her moral influence is no more optimally employed than here.” “Attitudes toward human sexuality threaten the moral authority of women on several fronts.” Claudia Laycock said it all comes down to what you can do. Some mother are great mothers and some are pretty poor, but some really can do it all. We need to understand that each person is in a unique circumstance. It is important to know that no matter their circumstances, childless or not, they can be role models to others and still be a moral influence. Lisa Buckner said her sister-in-law is a great moral example to Lisa’s daughter. Still, we need to contribute to the positive, and not the degrading equal opportunity promiscuity, coarseness in language, immodesty in dress. The world has a double standard that have caused men not rising to a higher standard, women have lowered their standards to wallow in the muck with men without conscience. We need to stand up and teach girls and boys to keep the standard of moral purity that will benefit society or society will experience degradation and. The third problem is when the line between genders is erased. We need to teach children that it is OK to be girls and OK to be boys. How do women maintain their ability to be a moral force? We need to preserve our innate virtue that is within us. And we need not apologize for our moral standards. God is the source of our moral power and we need to strive to maintain that relationship. Recommended reading: Bruce L. Hafen, “Motherhood and the Moral Influence of Women,” http://worldcongress.org/wfc2_spkrs/wcf2_hafen.htm Sheri Dew, “Are We Not All Mothers?” Ensign, Nov. 2001.