Church Services This Week at Ridge Crest Ward Northridge Stake Layton Utah 10 April 2016

Elders Quorum

First Presidency Message

What was one thing you felt or learned during general conference?

Don't wait for our family members to ask for a blessing to offer one.

We get credit for trying.

Amos 3:7

7 Surely the Lord God will do nothing, but he revealeth his secret unto his servants the prophets.

Dnc 1:38

38 What I the Lord have spoken, I have spoken, and I excuse not myself; and though the heavens and the earth pass away, my word shall not pass away, but shall all be fulfilled, whether by mine own voice or by the voice of my servants, it is the same.

“I remembered the counsel a loving and kind President Harold B. Lee (1899–1973) had given me earlier with great emphasis: ‘Hal, if you want to get revelation, do your homework.’“

We have to think about what we want to understand and then the Lord will give us more than we found on our own.

“I read, pondered, and prayed over that 22nd draft. I studied as best I could under the influence of the Holy Ghost. By the time that quorum member gave his talk, I had done my homework. I am not sure I helped, but I know that I was changed when I heard the talk given. Messages came to me far beyond the words that I had read and that he spoke. The words had greater meaning than the ones I had read in the draft. And the message seemed to be meant for me, fitted to my needs.“

Sunday School

My teaching partners lesson on apostasy

Thessalonians 2:3

 1 Now we beseech you, brethren, by the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, and by our gathering together unto him,

 2 That ye be not soon shaken in mind, or be troubled, neither by spirit, nor by word, nor by letter as from us, as that the day of Christ is at hand.

 3 Let no man deceive you by any means: for that day shall not come, except there come a falling away first, and that man of sin be revealed, the son of perdition;

Amos 8:11-12

 11 ¶ Behold, the days come, saith the Lord God, that I will send a famine in the land, not a famine of bread, nor a thirst for water, but of hearing the words of the Lord:

 12 And they shall wander from sea to sea, and from the north even to the east, they shall run to and fro to seek the word of the Lord, and shall not find it.

In Christ’s ancient Church the members of the Church were called saints (Ephesians 2:19-20)

19 Now therefore ye are no more strangers and foreigners, but fellow citizens with the saints, and of the household of God;

20 And are built upon the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Jesus Christ himself being the chief corner stone;

See Chapter 16: The Church of Jesus Christ in Former Times

Sacrament Service

Heavenly Father wants us to be obedient because he knows what will keep us safe and He loves us.

Church Services This Week at Sullivan Hollow Second Ward Weber Heights Stake Ogden Utah 12-21-08

Announcements
December 23-25 - Stake Offices will be closed
January 4 - Church starts at 9am
January 11 7:15am - Stake General Priesthood Meeting
January 11 - Ward Conference

Priesthood Opening
Hel. 16: 14

14 And ^aangels did appear unto men, wise men, and did declare unto them glad tidings of great joy; thus in this year the scriptures began to be fulfilled.

3 Ne. 9: 21
21 Behold, I have come unto the world to bring ^aredemption unto the world, to save the world from sin.

22 Therefore, whoso ^arepenteth and cometh unto me ^bas a ^clittle child, him will I receive, for of such is the kingdom of God. Behold, for such I have ^dlaid down my life, and have taken it up again; therefore repent, and come unto me ye ends of the earth, and be saved.

Elders' Quorum
Chapter 23: “How Good and How Pleasant It Is … to Dwell Together in Unity” 271–80
One of the headings in the manual stated, "When we work together in unity, we can better accomplish the purposes of God. " I think this is true in most pursuits. I have often thought about this principle in looking at technology. Even though certain technologies advance at lightning speeds, but other areas lag. Companies compete and that drives certain technologies to some degree, but are often restricted by what makes the fastest and biggest profit. How much further would technologies be advanced and how many more technologies would we have if people and companies worked together more and compete less?

We develop drugs like Viagra by competition and driven by stock holders, but where would we be on the research about cancer, AIDS, or the many other big cripplers and killers if companies and people cooperated and joined forces more?

A group of carpenters can not build a house alone. We are building God's kingdom. We need to do whatever big or small job we have. Similar to what Elder Ucktdorf talked about in his conference talk "Lift Where You Stand".

What are our attitudes while we work? Do we impact our productivity and spirituality because we work with a bad or less than good attitude.

Sunday School
Lesson 43: “How Could Ye Have Departed from the Ways of the Lord?” 190
Moroni 1-6
No matter where we go in the Church the organization is the same. Moroni tells us of some of the way the Church was organized in his day. In chapter 4 and 5 he tells us how to bless the sacrament. In chapter 6 he tells us of the preparation and requirements for baptism.

Moroni is being pursued by those trying to kill him. He prays that what he writes will bless their children. In chapter 4 and he tells us how to bless the sacrament. In chapter 6 he tells us of the preparation and requirements for baptism.

Sacrament Service
The choir sang and gave a Christmas program. They had people read scripture between songs. During one song they had a handful of young girls sing a couple of the verses. They incorporated a guitar and a violin in parts of the program as well.

From the Bulletin:
What Could I Possibly Do to Top This?
In this season where we celebrate the biggest and best birthday, what gift could we possibly give the birthday child, Jesus? Couldn't we give Him our gifts of truly broken and repentant hearts, determined and contrite spirits, willing and obedient hearts, and senses of immeasurable gratitude for what we have been given including our humbling and teaching trials. How about the gift of forgiving others - we expect others to give the gift of forgiving to us? How about an honest tithe and generous fast offering? Would sharing the gospel be offensive to Him? And oh!! Regular attendance in the temple to give others (and ourselves) precious gifts at the temple? We are sure that our carefully planning out and completing our callings as well as giving generous doses of service so His work could move forward would not hurt his feelings either.

In the end, our gifts are very tiny (yet critical) compared to the gift of eternal life that He gives us for our efforts here on earth. Ultimately, regardless of what we give, His gift of grace saves us all.

Who Really Cares?
Unless a commitment is made, there are only promises and hopes; but no plans. Heavenly Father really does care and is committed to each of us and so He made a real, living, breathing plan to save each of us.

Let us likewise make real plans that are solidly linked to His. Let's write down measurable goals and cut them up into daily, bit-sized pieces. Let's review then often...putting habits of success into motion. And then, let's watch the miracles that come about as we do so.

Merry Christmas to one and all.

Sullivan Hollow 2nd Bishopric

Sunday June 22, 2008 - Services Sullivan Hollow Second Ward

Priesthood Opening
2 Nephi 28:20-21

20 For behold, at that day shall he ^arage in the ^bhearts of the children of men, and stir them up to anger against that which is good.

21 And others will he ^apacify, and lull them away into carnal ^bsecurity, that they will say: All is well in Zion; yea, Zion prospereth, all is well—and thus the ^cdevil ^dcheateth their souls, and leadeth them away carefully down to hell.

When we are slow to obey the prophets words because we think we have time or because they do not apply to us then we are being lulled into security.

July 13th 7:15am - general priesthood meeting at stake center.

Elders' Quorum
Oath and Covenant of the Priesthood
Doctrine and Covenants 84

35 And also all they who receive this priesthood ^areceive me, saith the Lord;

36 For he that receiveth my servants ^areceiveth me;

37 And he that ^areceiveth me receiveth my Father;

38 And he that receiveth my Father receiveth my Father’s ^akingdom; therefore ^ball that my Father hath shall be given unto him.

39 And this is according to the ^aoath and covenant which belongeth to the priesthood.

40 Therefore, all those who receive the ^apriesthood, receive this ^boath and covenant of my Father, which he cannot break, neither can it be moved.

-Priesthood - Power of God given to men to bless His children.
-Oath - Sacred promise with consequences. 100% guaranteed from God.
-Positive and negative consequences are possible.
-Covenant - Two party conditional oath. Action based contract.
-Receive - Not just take, but embrace.
-Magnify - Examine in great detail.

We can receive all the Father has. Many find this blasphemous. Many who spoke truth have been persecuted for speak that truth which others found blasphemous. Jesus was killed for saying He was the Son of God.

By ourselves we cannot succeed. this is the grace of God and also the atonement. His grace gives us strength. His atonement makes us clean to be able to return.

The bishop asked us to review a few resources on this subject. (Duties and Blessings of the Priesthood: Basic Manual for Priesthood Holders, Part B - Lesson 1: The Oath and Covenant of the Priesthood p2,

Faith and the Oath and Covenant of the Priesthood

by President Henry B. Eyring (April 2008),

The Key of the Knowledge of God

by President James E. Faust (October 2004))

Sunday School
Book of Mormon Lesson 23: “More Than One Witness” p. 102
Fish stories are hard to believe without more than one witness.
Missionaries go two by two. People are ordained and set apart by two or more people.
The Lord prepared Alma and also prepared Amulek to go with him as a second witness (Alma 8:8-10, 14-17, 10:1-5).

Sacrament Meeting
Youth including my daughter were asked to share experiences from youth conference last week. They went to the Manti Pagent on. They did baptisms for the dead in the Manti temple. They also stopped on the way to Manti in Salt Lake to go to temple square.

Several people shared their perspective on an experience that the bishop had with a guy that was riding his motorcycle from California back East. He had heard there was some Mormon mystery pagent going on, so he came to Manti on his way to see what it was all about. The bishop went up to him and started talking. He told him he should stop by temple square in Salt Lake City on his way. He said that he would and he gave the bishop his name and email address.

First Official Speaker
He just got back from his mission to New Mexico. He expressed that on his mission he heard from people that all churches were true and it didn't matter which one you went to. Yet some of these same people had left other churches because they did not baptize by immersion. As they taught them they expressed that if they were all true then it didn't matter how you were baptized. The point the missionaries were trying to make was that it was not institutions that were true, but the doctrine that they taught and if the doctrine was not true, then neither was the church teaching it.

The people in the early Church were disputing and changing the gospel even before the apostles died. The apostles spent a lot of time settling these disputations.

He quoted from Micah where he talks of priest teaching as an occupation and such and how Zion would be plowed under and started again.
Micah 3

11 The heads thereof judge for reward, and the priests thereof teach for hire, and the ^aprophets thereof divine for ^bmoney: yet will they lean upon the Lord, and say, Is not the Lord among us? none evil can come upon us.

12 Therefore shall Zion for your ^asake be ^bplowed as a field, and ^cJerusalem shall become ^dheaps, and the mountain of ^ethe house as the high places of the forest.

He noted that when crops get infested with bugs and go bad, sometimes all you can do to fix it is to plow under the field and start over.

Second Speaker
He shared an experience where he had talked to someone who believed that Heavenly Father, Jesus, and the Holy Ghost were the same being. He testified to the man that They were separate beings. He asked how he knew that. He said, "because Joseph Smith prayed and God and Jesus appeared to him together as separate beings.

Sunday April 13, 2008 - Sunday Services Sullivan Hollow Second Ward

Ward Home Page

Priesthood Opening
Someone shared a scripture that they said they thought of as they listened to the prophet and apostles speak last weekend.

Amos 3:7 -"Surely the Lord God will do nothing, ^abut he ^brevealeth his ^csecret unto his servants the ^dprophets."

They announced a DI drive. Deseret Industries is an organization that collects used items and sells them. The proceeds go to pay the employees who would otherwise have trouble getting work. I knew that part, as it is like Goodwill in Indiana. What I did not know was that DI is owned by the Church and it is part of the Church welfare system. My friend told me that people that have financial hardship can get vouchers from their bishop to get a bed of something from DI. A little like getting an order of food from the store house.

They took volunteers for something they called a 40 day fast. I guess the ward is collectively fasting for 40 days. A member takes a day of the 40 days until they filled up all the days. The days were not filling up, so the bishop reemphasized the importance of what they were doing. He had the members of the priesthood remind him why they were fasting. They said for missionary work and for the extra power that fasting brings. The bishop stated that this is not The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Tourists. It is the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. We are to be saints, followers of Christ, not just tourists that watch the work of Christ.

Elders' Quorum

Chapter 6: The Mission of John the Baptist p. 79–87

The instructor passed out a handout with the following images on them.

The excavated remains of the baptism site in Bethany Beyond Jordan, in modern-day Jordan. (Wikipedia)

John the Baptist Baptizing Jesus (LDS.org)

John the Baptist Conferring the Aaronic Priesthood (LDS.org)

The handout had the below text.

Begin Handout

Brief Description of John the Baptist

Scripture about John the Baptist

Luke 7:28 - No greater prophet

Isaiah 40:3-5 - Prophecy

John 1:22-23 - Prophecy Fulfilled

Malachi 3:1 - Prophecy

Luke 1:17, 76, 77 - Prophecy to his Father

D&C 84:28 - Ordained of God at Eight Days of Age

Brief Description of Life:

1. Born of Zachariah and Elizabeth, Birth foretold by Gabriel.

2. Zachariah was a priest, so John had the priesthood.

3. Preached and baptized in the River Jordan (see photo).

4. Knew he was a precursor to Jesus (John 3:22-36).

5. Imprisoned and beheaded by Herod Antipas.

"Post-Life" Description

Ordained Joseph Smith and Oliver Cowdery to the Aaronic Priesthood on May 15, 1829 (JSH 1:68-70).

Priesthood Timeline (Dennis Roberts)

D&C 13.........................................................................(1829) Aaronic Priesthood

D&C 128:20.................................................................(1829) Melchizedek Priesthood

D&C 20:38-50.............................................................(1830) Apostle, Elders, Priests, Teachers, Deacons

D&C 41:9-10................................................................(1831) Bishops

D&C 52..........................................................................(1831) High Priests

D&C 81:90....................................................................(1832) First Presidency

Teachings of Prophet Joseph Smith, 38-39............(1833) High Council

D&C 102.......................................................................(1834) Quorum of the Twelve Apostles

D&C 107:23-24...........................................................(1835) First Quorum of the Seventy

End Handout

Zachariah was probably familiar with the prophecies about a forerunner to the messiah. This must've been a similar shock to them like the news Mary and Joseph received as well.

It is a miracle that he was not killed sooner. Based on Jewish traditions he should have been executed for blasphemy.

Joseph Smith in commented on John being the greatest prophet (Luke 7:28) stated, "He was entrusted with a divine mission of preparing the way before the face of the Lord. Whoever had such a trust committed to him before or since? No man."

Sunday School
Book of Mormon Lesson 13: The Allegory of the Olive Trees p56
We came up with a brief list of symbols and meanings used in the allegory.

Symbol	Meaning
Vineyard	World
Grafting	People
Master	Christ
Pruning	People
Fruits	Works
Branches	Groups of People
Servant	Prophets

This is only a partial list that the class came up with.

Pruning, grafting, and digging - Christ works hard for the world and the individuals int eh world. Many things need to be done to make the tree grow in the best ways for it and for the vineyard.

Wild branches grafted in to tame them. This is also done to bring variety and to strengthen the tree after it had been pruned.

Someone brought out that sometimes those who have seminary as a class in school take it for granted. She said something about those out East have to get up early in the morning for seminary and are more dedicated. I don't know if one could say that those I grew up with who had early morning seminary were more dedicated, but it bring out an interesting idea that people might be grafted from other parts of the country into Utah and that that could be another meaning of the allegory.

Someone pointed out that those that were nourish on poor ground might mean those in the middle east where it was harder for Christ's Church to grow, whereas in America it was designed to be a place where one could worship God.

Again someone contrasted Utah with other parts of the country. They said that in other parts people have to plan to go to the temple and even stay overnight in a hotel. They also said that some have to travel to get to their ward buildings.

The gathering of Israel and the restoration are the grafting back in the branches.

Other servants - Missionaries and general church membership.

The bishopric called upon certain member of the ward to share experiences that we had with listening to General Conference last week. I had never seen anyone do a testimony meeting like that. I think it was just a special thing because of general conference.

The first person called upon talked about President Monson's talk from the priesthood session. President Monson had talked about a young boy wathing him and mimicing everything he did as he sat on the stand. He ended up wiggling his ears to give the boys a challenging thing to do. The speaker today wondered how many kids have watched him and the other priests as they have blessed the sacrament. He said that he would watch the olded boys when he was a little kid.

One guy talked about the statistics about how much service the Church gave last year. He said he felt very proud and the he reflected on if he had done his part as he heard a talk on being good neighbors.

One person related how he had a relative that called President Monson Little Tommy Monson because she knew him when she was young. It reminded me of my mission president who was a cousin of his and was always referring to him as Tommy.

Sacrament Meeting
There were two letters from the first presidency read today.

The first was a reiteration to stop sending letters to the first presidency with doctrinal issues. The Lord has set up His Church in an orderly way. Much like when Moses put leaders over smaller groups of the children of Israel. Those leaders then reported to him.

The second was stating that the story that has circulating that a Church leader has stated that those who were members of the church in Gordon B. Hinckley's day would have those in the after life bow to them because of their greatness. The letter stated that this is false doctrine and that no leader of the Church had ever said this.

Post Church
They had something after church called a second Sunday social. They had little snacks and people sat around and talked. I had never heard of that, but I think I have heard of a "linger longer", although I don't recall being in a ward that ever did that.

Sunday March 30, 2008 - Services South Ogden Sixth Ward

Joint Relief Society/Priesthood Meeting
The pews in this chapel were huge. Even the pews on the sides were full sized pews. Every ward I have been in that I can recall had little pews on the side that would barely hold a small family. Generally smaller families would sit in them or single people.

1st Speaker
To help us be one Christ organized His Church.

To help us be one Christ set up authority. Matt. 16: 19 - And I will ^agive unto thee the ^bkeys of the ^ckingdom of heaven: and whatsoever thou shalt ^dbind on earth shall be bound in heaven: and whatsoever thou shalt loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven.

The people went to Peter to get a "ruling" on circumcision.

The apostles died and the rulers of Rome took over the Church. Through the reformation people tried to bring back the

D&C 132: 8 - Behold, mine house is a house of ^aorder, saith the Lord God, and not a house of confusion.

2nd Speaker
-Heber J. Grant set up the Church's welfare plan.

The speaker talked a bit of prayer and cited some scriptures.

Matt. 6: 6 But thou, when thou prayest, enter into thy ^acloset, and when thou hast ^bshut thy door, ^cpray to thy Father which is in ^dsecret; and thy Father which ^eseeth in secret shall ^freward thee openly.

D&C 109: 8, 16

8 Organize yourselves; ^aprepare every needful thing, and establish a house, even a ^bhouse of prayer, a house of fasting, a house of faith, a house of learning, a house of glory, a house of ^corder, a ^dhouse of God;

• • •

16 And that this house may be a house of prayer, a house of fasting, a house of faith, a house of glory and of God, even thy house;

He also quoted some from Mark Twain's Huck Finn, "It made me shiver. And I about made up my mind to pray and see if I couldn’t try to quit being the kind of boy I was and be better. So I kneeled down. But the words wouldn’t come. Why wouldn’t they? It weren’t no use to try and hide it from Him … I knowed very well why they wouldn’t come. It was because my heart warn’t right; it was because I weren’t square: it was because I was playing double. I was letting on to give up sin, but away inside of me I was holding on to the biggest one of all. I was trying to make my mouth say I would do the right thing and the clean thing. But deep down in me, I knowed it was a lie, and He knowed it. YOU CAN’T PRAY A LIE … I found that out."

The bishop was the last speaker.
He talked about the challenges we have in our homes. One he mentioned was self control. He stated that as we keep our covenants we will find peace and joy.

"The opposite of fear is faith."

Sunday School
As we looked for the Gospel Doctrine class we were told they had two of them since the class was so big. That was something I had never seen in a ward. One was in the Relief Society room and one was in one of the seminary class rooms. Both of these were interesting to me.

Let's start with the seminary class rooms. Where I am from seminary is held early in the morning before school. I knew they has seminary as a part of school generally in Utah, but I hadn't expected that there was enough students in one building that they would need two class rooms. Ours are also either held in the teachers home or in a small classroom in the church with folding tables that they take down at the end of class. These classrooms were large rooms and they had actual school desks that stayed set up all the time.

The Relief Society room was the size of a small cultural hall. It had three doors and a folding divider in the middle. My experience with Relief Society rooms are that they are generally a small corner of the building, just a little bit bigger than a large classroom. Our RS room is not big enough for our gospel doctrine class. Their classes combined appeared to be twice the size of ours.

All right enough tourist commentary. Let's get to the lesson notes.

Book of Mormon Lesson 12: “Seek Ye for the Kingdom of God” p51

D&C 107: 99 - Wherefore, now let every man learn his ^aduty, and to act in the office in which he is appointed, in all ^bdiligence.

D&C 58: 27 - Verily I say, men should be ^aanxiously engaged in a good cause, and do many things of their own free will, and bring to pass much righteousness;

Thoughts precede actions. One will more often give into temptations that they have been thinking about than temptations that we do impulsively. One's mind is a buffet and we are what we eat.

Thoughts that could affect us adversely could be negative self thoughts as well as temptations.

Sacrament Meeting
It was very loud in the meeting. It could've just been kids, but I'm not sure. Just seem a lot louder than my ward in Indiana.

The bishop announced a baptism that was coming up. It sounded like the missionaries would be bringing more than one person. It sounded like perhaps they would be bringing anyone who was ready by that date and it was not because there was one person that was ready for baptism. It kind of makes more sense about the way we were taught in the Missionary Training Center (MTC). The instructors always said, in giving us examples on how to invite someone to be baptized, "We are holding a baptism on ____..." Back home and even in my mission I only ever saw baptisms help for just one person or a family. Where their are more children being baptised you probably just schedule a baptism service for a certain day during the month and everyone just goes that day. Although when my oldest son was baptized there was talk that we might have to double up with another child's baptism if they were going to be baptized in the same month.

1st Speaker
She talked about preparing ourselves for conference and being ready to receive message for our lives and not just endure it. She said that when she was a kid they called it pajama church, since they got up, had breakfast, and turned on the TV and sat around and watched conference in their pajamas. Now more commentary on this from a "tourists" perspective. The day is usually well on its way by the time conference comes on in Indiana and when I was a kid you had to go to church to watch. Fortunately in the last few years the Church has had it on the internet. Generally all we have been able to get is audio, but the video stream gets more reliable each time.

She pointed out that God speaks to our leaders to teach them how to lead the entire church. We can listen to them to learn how to hear God to lead our own lives.

She said that we should not just say, "That was a great talk." We should apply each talk to our lives. Don't just turn on the TV and watch, but prepare in advance. Think during the week about your challenges and pray that you might be strengthened and inspired. Perhaps go to conference with a specific question you need answered. She talked about a couple that had ben raised differently. In the husband's home as a child the mother took care of the dishes. If the wife's home both had pitched in to get it done. They joked that they would take th question to conference. One of the speakers stated that men needed to help their wives around the house.

She quoted President Hinckley, "I will be a better man if I listen and apply these things to my life."

She recommended that we get to know our new prophet.

She noted that people, like her, that live in Utah should be grateful that they can turn ont heir TVs and watch conference. She said that not everyone in the world has that opportunity.

She said something about having gone to a marrieds ward. That was new to me. I have heard of singles wards and we have those in Indiana. I even saw as I was preparing to travel to Utah that there was a retireds ward. I guess I kind of understand the singles ward thing as it is important for singles to interact with other single people of their faith, but the retireds and marrieds wards concept is a little bit harder for me to get my head around why that would be important. Those groups do have unique needs and maybe it makes the congregation stronger having that commonality together.

After she spoke a lady played the chelo for us.

2nd Speaker
He said that he pondered what made up a good talk. He said that generally talks started either with a joke or a lie. He said, "I couldn't think of a joke, so I'm glad to speak to you today."

He talked about serving his mission in Norway. He said it is eight hours ahead of Salt Lake City, so the 12:00pm session of conference came at 8pm for him out there.

I was a little bit surprised at all the talk of how the rest of the world has things different than Utah. I guess some folks there notice the differences as they went other places as much as what I was noticing in coming to Utah.

He said that he likes snowmobiling and he just recovered from an accident where a guy in front of him had set off an avalanche and he got stuck in it. We have a lot of snowmobiling in Indiana, even though I have never done it, but one thing we never here about is an accident that was caused by someone setting off an avalanche.

The speaker noted that he wants to do better at forgiving.

Matt. 6: 14-15

14 For if ye ^aforgive men their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you:

15 But if ye ^aforgive not men their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses.

Moroni 10:32-33

32 Yea, ^acome unto Christ, and be ^bperfected in him, and ^cdeny yourselves of all ungodliness; and if ye shall deny yourselves of all ungodliness, and ^dlove God with all your might, mind and strength, then is his grace sufficient for you, that by his grace ye may be ^eperfect in Christ; and if by the grace of God ye are perfect in Christ, ye can in nowise deny the power of God.

33 And again, if ye by the grace of God are perfect in Christ, and deny not his power, then are ye ^asanctified in Christ by the grace of God, through the shedding of the ^bblood of Christ, which is in the covenant of the Father unto the remission of your ^csins, that ye become ^dholy, without spot.

He said that he has a testimony of paying tithing. He said that money has been tigh now that he has a wife, but they have continued to pay their tithing. He said that he has been surprised at how money has come in from places he would've never thought of.

Saturday October 6, 2007 - Morning Session of General Conference

Saturday Morning Session of the 177th Semiannual General Conference of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints
President Hinckley presented the names of General Church officers for sustaining (Text, Audio, Video). Included in that was calling a new councilor to the prophet, who would replace President James E. Faust who died recently.

Elder Henry B. Eyring was sustained as second councilor in the First Presidency.

Elder Quentin L. Cook was called to fill the vacancy in the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles left by Elder Eyring being called into the First Presidency.

Boyd K Packer - Acting President of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles
The Weak and the Simple of the Church (Text, Audio, Video)
He talked about the practice of sustaining leaders. "We always know who is to called to lead or teach..." "In this way, the Church is protected from any impostor..."

He also spoke of our responsibility to accept callings. "Each member is responsible to accept the call to serve. " We all need to do our part. "The Church has no professional clergy. The call to leadership positions worldwide is drawn from the congregation. We have no seminaries for the training of professional leaders. "

He talked of how we do not have the problem of struggling to find clergymen. We can go into an area where there are members and set up a congregation with leadership being called from those local members.

He talked of how every calling in the Church is important. Every down to the level of nursey leaders and Sunday school teachers. Those teachers are giving those children a love for attending church and reenforcing the teachings they are receiving at home. For some they may be the only exposure gospel living that they get throughout the week.

He quoted a couple of scriptures service and humility. “And whosoever will be chief among you, let him be your servant” (Matthew 20:27). “The same is appointed to be the greatest, notwithstanding he is the least and the servant of all” (D&C 50:26). He talked about the relationship between children in a family. Is one of more worth than another?

Bishop Richard C. Edgley -First Counselor in the Presiding Bishopric
Enduring Together (Text, Audio, Video)
He started out talking about a newspaper article that talked about how Utah Mormons know everything about every other Mormon in town. The reporter said that it "...can be intrusive", but "It also happens to be one of our greatest strengths.” The reporter related a story about a car accident. Before the police and ambulance showed up the entire ward knew. “In 48 hours, the Quigley yard was mowed, home cleaned, laundry done, refrigerator stocked, relatives fed and a trust fund set up at a local bank. We would have given their dog a bath if they had one.”

Bishop Edgley quoted, “As ye are desirous to come into the fold of God, and to be called his people, and are willing to bear one another’s burdens, that they may be light; yea, and are willing to mourn with those that mourn; yea, and comfort those that stand in need of comfort,” (Mosiah 18:8–9)

He sited a few examples of tragedies that happened in his own ward. He said that his ward has learned five things through it all.

1. The Lord’s organization is fully adequate to know and care for those with even the most dire emotional and spiritual needs.


2. Adversity can bring us closer to God, with a renewed and enlightened appreciation for prayer and the Atonement, which covers pain and suffering in all their manifestations.


3. Members who suffer tragedy firsthand often experience an increased capacity for love, compassion, and understanding. They become the first, last, and often the most effective responders in giving comfort and showing compassion to others.


4. A ward, as well as a family, draws closer together as it endures together—what happens to one happens to all.


5. And perhaps most important, we can each be more compassionate and caring because we have each had our own personal trials and experiences to draw from. We can endure together.

I think I missed this when I listened to it the first time and when I read it. As I was listening to it again on the way into work this morning I noticed that he said, "what happens to one happens to all" at least three times. I have often noticed the opposite of what he expressed in his talk. Some of ideas that seem to get in the way of ward unity are:

1. They are capable of doing that themselves.
2. They brought this on themselves.
3. Nobody did x for me when y happened to me.
4. If they need help all they have to do is call me.
   

Mary N. Cook - Second Counselor in the Young Women General Presidency
Strengthen Home and Family (Text, Audio, Video)
She quoted from the For the Strength on Youth pamphlet, “being part of a family is a great blessing. . . . Not all families are the same, but each is important in Heavenly Father’s plan”

She quoted President Hinckley from the talk he gave at the General Young Women meeting last spring. “(1) pray, (2) study, (3) pay your tithing, and (4) attend your meetings” (“Let Virtue Garnish Thy Thoughts Unceasingly,” Liahona and Ensign, May 2007, 115).

Sister Cook said to ask ourselves, “Who in my family could benefit from my personal prayers?”

She talked of how President Hinckley in the same talk mentioned above counciled to “get all of the education you can”

She quoted 1 Timothy 4:12, “Let no man despise thy youth; but be thou an example of the believers, in word, in conversation, in charity, in spirit, in faith, in purity” and also referenced the Family section in the For the Strength of Youth pamphlet.

She closed by quoting from the talk by Elder Robert D. Hales, “How Will Our Children Remember Us?” and “The Family: A Proclamation to the World,” Elder Hales said, “If the example we have received from our parents was not good, it is our responsibility to break the cycle. . . "

Elder Enrique R. Falabella - Seventy
Why Are We Members of the Only True Church? (Text, Audio, Video)
He spoke of growing up poor and how his father taught him "that happiness does not depend on money."

After receiving the gospel his father set a goal to get his family to the temple. The temple was a 15-day trip with highways in poor condition, uncomfortable buses, not even knowing the route..."

His mother had passed away when he was very young and after they were all sealed to her in the temple they were glad to be an eternal family and not just till death do they part.

He stated that "The Church of Jesus Christ is a church of priests, 'a royal priesthood, an holy nation' (1 Peter 2:9)."

He related a story about him and his son. "When my son Daniel was six years old, he saw that I was worried because I had to attend a stake conference. I was unsure about what to teach the Saints. He came up to me and said, “Daddy, that’s really easy.” That’s how children see everything.

“Let’s see, Son,” I told him. “Since it’s easy, tell me what I can talk to them about.”

“Talk to them about prayer,” he told me.

“That’s a good subject,” I told him, “but they’ve heard a lot of talk about prayer; what could I tell them that’s new?”

“That’s easy too, Daddy. First tell them, ‘Before you start to talk to Heavenly Father, think about the things you want to tell Him.’ “

“That sounds like a magnificent idea,” I replied. “And then?”

“Well, once you’ve thought of it, tell it to Him! When you finish, wait and see if He has something to tell you.”"

Elder Spencer J. Condie - Seventy
Claim the Exceeding Great and Precious Promises (Text, Audio, Video)
"The first principle of the gospel is faith in the Lord Jesus Christ." (Article of Faith 4)

He touched on that this is faith that he atoned for our sins (Isaiah 1:18) and that by His
Resurrection we too will be resurrected (1 Corinthians 15:21–23).

"In these latter days, the Lord revealed that “when we obtain any blessing from God, it is by obedience to that law upon which it is predicated” (D&C 130:21). The Lord makes generous promises, and He certifies that He will not vary from these promises, for, said He, “I, the Lord, am bound when ye do what I say; but when ye do not what I say, ye have no promise” (D&C 82:10)." He gave some examples of this principle.

Commandment	Promise	Scripture
Confess and forsake sins	Forgiveness	D&C 58:43
Pay tithing	Opening the windows of Heaven	Malachi 3:10
Word of Wisdom	Great treasures of knowledge	D&C 89:19
Keep the Sabbath holy	Become unspotted from the world	D&C 59:9; Exodus 31:13
Feast upon the words of Christ	Divine guidance and inspiration	2 Nephi 32:3
liken all scriptures unto ourselves	Divine guidance and inspiration	1 Nephi 19:23
Pray	whatsoever ye shall ask the Father in my name, which is right, believing that ye shall receive, behold it shall be given unto you	3 Nephi 18:20
Let virtue garnish your thoughts unceasingly	Holy Ghost will be our constant companion.	1 Nephi 19:23
Fast	“loose the bands of wickedness,” undo our “heavy burdens,” and “break every yoke”	Isaiah 58:6
Be sealed in the temple and keep your covenants.	“shall be a fulness and a continuation of the seeds forever and ever”	D&C 132:19

Elder Dieter F. Ukdorf - Apostle
Have We Not Reason to Rejoice(Text, Audio, Video)
He quoted from one of the hymns we sang this morning:
Now let us rejoice in the day of salvation.
No longer as strangers on earth need we roam.
Good tidings are sounding to us and each nation.
(“Now Let Us Rejoice,” Hymns, no. 3)

His family joined the Church while living in war torn Germany. He related a story about the war front moving toward their town and his mother and his siblings evacuating. During that time his family learned about the Church. Even in our times of trial, “My strength is made perfect in weakness. Most gladly therefore will I rather glory in my infirmities, that the power of Christ may rest upon me” (2 Corinthians 12:9).

He expounded on the fourth article of faith. "We believe that the first principles and ^aordinances of the Gospel are: first, ^bFaith in the Lord Jesus Christ; second, ^cRepentance; third, ^dBaptism by ^eimmersion for the ^fremission of sins; fourth, Laying on of ^ghands for the ^hgift of the Holy Ghost."(Articles of Faith 1:4)

Once we have received truth we are to endure to the end. Enduring is not hanging in there. It is an active process.

He closed saying Jesus wants us to succeed. He has given us a lot of requirements, but he has made a plan that is entirely within our ability to attain for us if we follow him.

President Thomas S. Monson - 1st Counseler in the The First Presidency
Mrs. Patton—the Story Continues (Text, Audio, Video)
He talked about death and how sad it can be for people and the hope that we have for what is after we die.

Sunday July 29, 2007

Sacrament Meeting
One of the youth reported on the youth conference we just had. The conference had been scheduled to start Thursday. Due to the service project needing to be changed and not as much labor being needed on it as had been needed on the originally scheduled project the start day of the conference was moved to Friday. Initially the youth grumbled about that and some were pretty determined to not have a good time because of it, but in the end many of those youth were very moved by the experience.

The first adult speaker related a story from the emergency room. A fifteen year old was brought after crashing a car he had stolen. The parents of the boy were blaming the incident on the owner of the car for not having locked the doors.

I believe the first speaker referenced The Gift by Blaine M. Yorgensen. For some reason I made a note about it, but can't find it online to refresh myself on why I made a note about it.

Second Speaker
There are 6 steps to repentance and none of them include excuses, denial, and blaming others.

The book of Ether has 2 examples of repentance. One a righteous man and on not so righteous. One repented quickly and one was slow to get around to repenting.

Join Priesthood and Relief Society Meeting

The bishop showed a standard organization pyramid where there are a few people on top like a CEO and such. He then showed an inverted pyramid with the bishop on the bottom.
He talked of several areas where we do well in supporting our bishop. Things like funerals where people assist witht he setup and such.

He then talked of an area where we need to do a lot better. Home and visiting teaching. He said that in home teaching the men are getting to about one family a month per home teaching companionship. There are a lot of people that we can't find or who are not active in church that can be difficult to get to, but the numbers reflect that we aren't even getting out to see those that are active.

It is the responsibility of everyone who has taken on them the name of Christ to take care of each other.



What happened with you this week at church?