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This last summer, my wife and I decided to start homeschooling our girls. It works out nicely because I do most of my work for the year during the summer which gives me freedom to focus on other things for the rest of the year. The first thing we wanted to focus on was homeschooling and then finish up my schooling at BYU Hawaii in January. Our school is called, Zion’s Academy, and I am the Principle and Seminary teacher, and my wife is the Vice Principle, and teacher, but we actually do the teaching together, it is kind of fun. Our girls even gave us names while they at school, Mrs. Mom and Mr. Dad. I still get a kick out of it when they call me, Mr. Dad. I have to tell you that I never realized that teaching could be so much fun; we just have tons of fun every day.
I have really been thankful for the opportunity of spending 30 minutes every day teaching my girls about the Gospel. They learn so quickly and it is neat to see how their little minds work. I had to learn a lot also, because I tend to teach at a higher level than could be most effective. I have noticed that when I bring it down to their level they really soak it all up.
I tell you this because for just a minute I want to talk specifically to the children and try to help them understand what Charity is and some suggestions on how to help them learn to develop charity in their own lives and then I will finish by addressing the whole congregation.
For starters, I bet many of you children already know what Charity means, but for those that don’t, “Charity is the pure love of Christ. It is the love that Christ has for the children of men and that the children of men should have for one another” LDS.org. Now lets see… What does the “pure love of Christ” really mean? To start off with we need to understand what pure means. Hopefully, all of you like ice cream, I know my girls do. It seems that they would do about anything for ice cream. Each of you children close your eyes and imagine that you have a big bowl of your favorite kind of ice cream, maybe Rocky Road, or cookies n’ Cream, or whatever is your favorite. Imagine taking a few bits… I can almost taste my bowl, it creamy and just absolutely yummy? Go ahead and take another bite, but now instead of yummy goodness, it has loads of salt in that bite. Hopefully none of children have ever had a bite of salt because it is very yucky. Ok, back to our imagination, did that bite taste very good, of course not? What if every other bite of your yummy ice cream was salt instead of ice cream? Would that bowl of ice cream be very good? No, it would not. So, we could say that a pure bowl of ice cream was simply that, just creamy, yummy ice cream goodness, right? Now that is the same with the pure love Christ. It is simply that, pure love without any salt or in other words, angry thinking, mean actions, selfishness, and things like that.
Now, that we have a better understanding of what pure means let’s see if we can understand what the pure love of Christ means, at least in part. Let me ask a few quick questions to all the children, but first can I have all you children raise your hand high in the air, like this, and keep it up to show me that you are ready for the question… Let me see all those hands…
?-That is perfect!… Now, keep your hand raised high in the air if you have a favorite toy, that you just love? If you are like my girls you probably have several.
-Very good!… Now for the next question, can you switch hands and put your other hand high in the air.
?-Good job!… Ok, now keep your hand raised high in the air if you love your mom very much? Wow, look at all that love. That is the reason that I choose mom instead of us dads, because I was a little nervous of the outcome.
-Ok, are you children ready for the last question? Lets see how ready you are. For this question can you raise both of your hands really high in the air.
?-You children are so good. Ok, here is the question. Keep your hands raised really high in the air, IF you love your mom more than your favorite toy?… Again, keep your hands raised really high in the air if you love your mom more than your toy?
-Look at all those hands, this is so cool looking. Let’s see if you children can impress your mommies and daddies by taking both of those amazing hands of yours and folding them up real tight in your lap… Like this… Good job! You are all so awesome.
Now, can each of you see the difference in love between the love that you have for your toy and the love that you have for your mom? Can you see how the love that you have for your mom is much greater than the love that you have of your toy? You love your mom and I know that she loves you even more. But, did you know that your Father in Heaven and your older brother Jesus Christ love you with an even greater love? Isn’t that amazing. You are loved by your parents and you are loved even more by your Father in Heaven and Jesus Christ. Hopefully, now you can see, how charity or the pure love of Christ “is the highest, noblest, and strongest kind of love and the most joyous to the soul” LDS.org. How can you children learn to love with such great love? You are probably thinking of a few ways right now, but there are many ways to develop such great love. Each of your parents, try and help you on a daily basis to develop such great love. Let me give you just two quick examples that my wife and I have done to help our girls learn to develop charity or the pure love of Christ. These two examples should help each of you children to think of some ways that you can learn to love with Christlike love.
The first example is that in our home, our girls have a daily routine chart that they complete each morning, well… we are not perfect at it, but they do a good job. Anyway, one of the things that they have on their chart is, to do one nice thing for someone that day. Once they do one nice thing, then, they get to put a star on their chart. They do different things each day, whether it is helping their sister make their bed or helping their younger sister get dressed. The result is always the same. They feel very happy inside and the sister they served feels happy inside as well. Because of this small act of service they both, now, have an increase of Christlike love in their hearts. It is so neat as a parent to see your children serving each other.
The last example has to do with the time of year that we are in. Do you children know what time of year it is? Yep, its Christmas time. This month is a easy month to learn to love with a more Christlike love. As a family we go to Chickfilet on Tuesday nights because they have family night with kid crafts and of course, cheaper food. It is always fun. Well, the last time we went, they had a Christmas tree with ornaments all over the tree. Each of these ornaments had a child’s name on it and something they would like for Christmas. Each of these children were in need and less fortunate. My wife grabbed one for our family to buy a gift for, and then on the way to the car she asked if she could get one for each of our girls so that they can have that wonderful experience themselves also. It was such a great idea of hers. I just wish that I could think of others even a fraction as much as my wife does. If I could do that, I would be much better off, but that is why I married her, she is just awesome. So each of our girls went back in and picked out their own ornament and child that they wanted to buy a gift for. When they got in the car they were so happy, it was just neat.
Now I would like to shift my remarks back to everyone. I was so excited when I heard that one of the topics we were to speak on was charity. I told my wife the two topics that we were given and told her to pick which everyone she wanted. I thought for sure she would pick service but she picked charity. I have to say that I was quite disappointed. It was weird, but, it almost felt as if something precious and dear to me was taken from me. Well, to my great joy, and I mean it literally, when my wife sat down to prepare her talk she decided to change to service and I got back my precious topic of charity.
Well, my talk preparation took an unexpected turn on Friday night just before I went to bed. I had been praying about my topic and I felt strongly that I needed to direct my initial remarks to the children. At first I was a little reluctant because I had already been preparing and gathering my thoughts which consisted of many of my favorite prophets and their powerful words on charity. But as I started to prepare for the children my talk just seemed to fall into place. I had a renewed desire to help them understand this vitally important God-like characteristic that we all must be found possessed of it at the last day. So, here I am with just a few minutes left and I pray that the Spirit will be with us as I try to convey to your hearts a little of what is in my heart.
If you have your scriptures please grab them and follow along because theses verses are so very powerful. I want to use Moroni 7 as my guide and wow there is so much in this chapter it is crazy. So let’s get started.
We read in verse 1:
This is great, Moroni took precious room left on the plates to record the words of his father. It is not hard to understand why he would do that. All you have to do is read it and it is all clear. This is one of my favorite chapters in the Book of Mormon and it had to of been one of Moroni’s also. Ok, moving on. So we come to the great three, faith, hope, and charity.
I used to want to look at these three as a ladder, where you can take one at a time and could advance to the next. But no matter how I looked at it they still got all twisted together. I now look at them as a bike. If you separated the bike and the two peddles would the move forward? No, but together they propel forward. I consider the bike frame to be charity and one peddle is faith and the other is hope. Let me show you in the scriptures. Turn with me to verse 40-42.
Do you see why they can’t be looked at as a ladder, but as peddles, each giving a little at different times but also each constantly present. Now for the frame, but remember that the frame is not necessarily next it is just more evident now that the bike is in motion. Turn to verse 43-44
Now that we see the correlation between these three God-like attributes we can talk in more detail about what charity is. We don’t have to travel very far, just to the next verse, 45-47:
There is no summing that up, it is very clear to the simplest of minds. Now I must close and I want to close with the big why. Why; is charity so important, Mormon tells us this as well, verse 48:
Is that not the goal, to see him as he is and to be purified even as he is pure?
I want you all to know that I love this Gospel with all my heart. I know that it is the only true church upon the face of the whole earth. I know that it was restored again upon the earth by Joseph Smith, whose sacrifice and focus causes my heart to overflow with love and gratitude. I also know that Moroni under the inspiration of the Holy Ghost gave us chapter 7, that if we learn and apply these teachings we will one day become like our Father in Heaven and give glory to Jesus Christ for giving us such teachings. I also know that we will one day embrace Moroni and shed tears of joy and gratitude for him being an instrument in the Lords hands in giving us these great teachings, and then we will have an opportunity to embrace and thank Mormon for his inspired words. If we heed these teachings, there will be such a day as I have testified and our joy will be full and I say these things in the name of Jesus Christ, Amen.
My wife, Kiera, and I were asked to teach a combined 5th Sunday lesson in our ward back in August. I kept meaning to compile this lesson into a talk and still will at some point, but until then here is our lesson notes. I took the sections in black and my wife took the sections in blue. For my sections I have changed the text color to red for the things that I taught that were not in the lesson.
Unity in Marriage
The Lord has commanded husbands and wives to be one.
1. Have everyone take a min to think about a vacation that they have not taken but would like to. Think about how to explain it to someone in 60 seconds.
2. Now turn to whoever is next to you and I want both of you to explain your vacation in 60 seconds. You will do it at the same time and be prepared to report on the vacation.
3. Have a few explain their experience?
– How does that apply to unity in marriage?
Read Genesis 2:24 with them.
“Therefore shall a man leave his father and his mother, and shall cleave unto his wife: and they shall be one flesh.”
Read Three Principles of Marriage
Three Principles of Marriage, Matthew O. Richardson, Ensign, Apr 2005, 20–24
All couples can review their relationships, regardless of how long they have been married, to see if they have left or are allowing others to leave appropriately. Our personal hobbies, the choice of how we use our discretionary time, the people we choose to spend time with, or our quest and love for things may be dampening our relationships.
By scriptural definition… we find that God expects us to “cling” to our spouse or to “stick” with him or her. But it should also be understood that this is not a one-time event but a condition that lasts throughout a couple’s marriage.
In 1831 the Lord revealed the law of the Church to the newly gathered Saints and commanded, “Thou shalt love thy wife with all thy heart, and shalt cleave unto her and none else” (D&C 42:22). This is the only place in scripture where the Lord asks us to love anything or anyone with all our hearts besides Himself. President Hinckley has… said that a husband should regard his wife “as the greatest treasure of his life.” 8 In Matthew 6:21 [Matt. 6:21] we read, “For where your treasure is, there will your heart be also” (see also 3 Ne. 13:21).
When a man and a woman fully understand that they can be complete only with each other, they learn to appreciate their differences and adjust their behavior as required in the Lord’s plan of happiness… the Lord taught Joseph Smith, “Be one; and if ye are not one ye are not mine” (D&C 38:27).
Unity in marriage is not achieved simply by kneeling at an altar and accepting a spouse. It requires effort for a couple to become one… [It] requires a change of heart, a change of mind, and even a change of living… Today we find that too many people are trying to change the Church, the scriptures, or gospel principles to match their designs rather than changing themselves to match the message of the Savior. How many couples try to shape marriage to fit their own perspective rather than undertaking the process of trying to shape themselves to the type of marriage God has ordained?
-Many times marriage is represented by circles interlocking.
“If Ye Are Not One Ye Are Not Mine”
The Savior of the world, Jesus Christ, said of those who would be part of His Church: “Be one; and if ye are not one ye are not mine” (D&C 38:27). And at the creation of man and woman, unity for them in marriage was not given as hope; it was a command! “Therefore shall a man leave his father and his mother, and shall cleave unto his wife: and they shall be one flesh” (Genesis 2:24). Our Heavenly Father wants our hearts to be knit together. That union in love is not simply an ideal. It is a necessity.
-Another representation of marriage puts the Savior at the top signifying our journey toward him and then the wife on one side and the husband on the other. Notice now how as we move closer to our Savior we draw closer to each other.
I personally like to visualize the circles on each corner and as we draw closer and closer to our Savior we truly become one. We become a new creature, Paul says, “if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new” (2 Cor. 5:17), I believe this applies to marriage, we become new creatures as we become united and one with the Savor at our head.
President Gordon B. Hinckley said: “Marriage, in its truest sense, is a partnership of equals, with neither exercising dominion over the other, but, rather, with each encouraging and assisting the other in whatever responsibilities and aspirations he or she might have” (“I Believe,” Ensign, Aug. 1992, 6).
- • Why must husbands and wives value one another as equal partners to be one?
- • What are some attitudes or customs that keep husbands and wives from being equal partners in their marriage? What can husbands and wives do to overcome such challenges?
- Elder Boyd K. Packer of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles taught:
- “It was not meant that the woman alone accommodate herself to the priesthood duties of her husband or her sons. She is of course to sustain and support and encourage them.
- “Holders of the priesthood, in turn, must accommodate themselves to the needs and responsibilities of the wife and mother. Her physical and emotional and intellectual and cultural well-being and her spiritual development must stand first among [their] priesthood duties.
- “There is no task, however menial, connected with the care of babies, the nurturing of children, or with the maintenance of the home that is not [a husband’s] equal obligation” (“A Tribute to Women,” Ensign, July 1989, 75).
As I read this I thought of the Joseph Smith movie. Joseph is out cleaning the rug and one of the other brother came by and said that he didn’t think that the prophet of the church should be seen doing such menial chores. I can’t remember exactly what he said but it was something to the affect of marriage is intended to last for eternity and we should only hope that our wives will want us for eternity.
Elder Richard G. Scott of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles counseled priesthood holders: “As a husband and worthy priesthood bearer, you will want to emulate the example of the Savior, whose priesthood you hold. You will make giving of self to wife and children a primary focus of your life. Occasionally a man attempts to control the destiny of each family member. He makes all the decisions. His wife is subjected to his personal whims. Whether that is the custom or not is immaterial. It is not the way of the Lord. It is not the way a Latter-day Saint husband treats his wife and family” (in Conference Report, Apr. 1999, 32; or Ensign, May 1999, 26).
- a. They share responsibility for ensuring that the family prays together, conducts family home evening, and studies the scriptures together.
- b. They work together in planning how family finances are used.
- c. They consult together and come to agreement on household rules and how to discipline children. The children see that their parents are unified in such decisions.
- d. They plan family activities together.
- e. They both help with housekeeping responsibilities.
- f. They attend church together.
Read 1 Corinthians 11:11 with participants.
Read Elder Richard G. Scott:
“In the Lord’s plan, it takes two—a man and a woman—to form a whole. … For the greatest happiness and productivity in life, both husband and wife are needed. Their efforts interlock and are complementary. Each has individual traits that best fit the role the Lord has defined for happiness as a man or woman. When used as the Lord intends, those capacities allow a married couple to think, act, and rejoice as one—to face challenges together and overcome them as one, to grow in love and understanding, and through temple ordinances to be bound together as one whole, eternally. That is the plan” (in Conference Report, Oct. 1996, 101; or Ensign, Nov. 1996, 73–74).
Give each participant a piece of paper and a pen or pencil. Ask each participant who is married to list some of his or her characteristics and abilities and some of the characteristics and abilities of his or her spouse. Ask each participant who is single to think of a married couple and list some characteristics and abilities of the husband and wife. After participants have had a few minutes to write, ask the following questions:
-My blessing that I received where the Lord told me that Kiera was my strength and that I was her strength. I can’t tell you how many times my mind has reflected back on those words and now I see how true that really is. I am nothing without her.
“We loved each other; there was no doubt about that, but we also had to get used to each other. I think every couple has to get used to each other. Early on I realized it would be better if we worked harder to get used to each other than constantly try to change each other” (Church News, 26 Sept. 1998, 4).
-experience of preparing this lesson
There is a little story I want to read from the 1982 Liahona it is by Hugh W. Pinnock:
“Several years ago while visiting in Florida I talked with Frank Shorter, a world-class marathon athlete. He won his event in the 1972 Olympics, placed second in 1976, and has won many other long-distance races. As we talked about his training schedule, I learned that he has dedicated a great part of his life to success in athletics. He knows exactly what foods to eat, how many kilometers to run each day for his needs (which is about 20 miles,) the attitude he needs to have if he expects to be victorious and a number of other characteristics relating to perfection in his chosen field.
While thinking of Frank Shorter and others who have succeeded in their chosen line of work, hobby, or profession, I asked myself, “Why couldn’t more of our husbands and wives have the same type of dedication to a successful marriage?”
I know of nothing worthwhile in life that comes easy—and nothing in life is as valuable as a strong marriage and a secure family.”
He goes on to say:
“Most strong marriages have been severely tested. Husbands and wives who encounter and surmount suffering, pain, misunderstanding, and temptation can enjoy a marriage that is beautiful and eternal. But I do not want us to look to the past—let us look only to today and the future.”
President Gordon B. Hinckley: “Determine that there will never be anything that will come between you that will disrupt your marriage. Make it work. Resolve to make it work. There is far too much of divorce, wherein hearts are broken and sometimes lives are destroyed. Be fiercely loyal one to another” (“Life’s Obligations,” Ensign, Feb. 1999, 2, 4).
- • What does the word loyal mean to you? (Answers may include being faithful, true, and trustworthy in a relationship.)
The Lord emphasized the need for husbands and wives to be loyal to one another. Read Doctrine and Covenants 42:22 22 Thou shalt alove thy wife with all thy heart, and shalt bcleave unto her and none else.
This commandment applies equally to husbands and wives.
President Spencer W. Kimball, the 12th President of the Church, taught: “The words none else eliminate everyone and everything. The spouse then becomes preeminent in the life of the husband or wife, and neither social life nor occupational life nor political life nor any other interest nor person nor thing shall ever take precedence over the companion spouse” (Faith Precedes the Miracle , 143).
- • How can a person keep social, occupational, and Church commitments from interfering with loyalty to his or her spouse?
- a. A husband can reschedule work, recreation, or other appointments to celebrate his wife’s birthday.
- b. A wife can pray daily for the success of her husband in his activities.
- c. They can listen to each other, even when doing so may not be convenient.
- d. They can speak lovingly and respectfully about each other in conversations with family members and friends.
This whole week my mind kept coming back to the question of why is it so important to be unified and the thought kept coming back to me that one reason is for our children. Then I found the quote that sums this up, it is by Spencer W Kimball.
When two Latter-day Saints are united together in marriage, promises are made to them concerning their offspring that reach from eternity to eternity. They are promised that they shall have the power and the right to govern and control and administer salvation and exaltation and glory to their offspring, worlds without end. And what offspring they do not have here, undoubtedly there will be opportunities to have them hereafter. What else could man wish? A man and a woman, in the other life, having celestial bodies, free from sickness and disease, glorified and beautified beyond description, standing in the midst of their posterity, governing and controlling them, administering life, exaltation and glory worlds without end.
In order for us to achieve such an honor we need to learn to be united with our spouse and serve them as if their comfort is all that matters because in the eternal scheme of things that is all that does matter.
I thought that it was rather funny, because I was asked to speak on the Birth of the Savior the same day that I had updated my blog with a new Christmas header. When I was designing the header I wanted to focus more on the Savior and so I started with a picture of the baby Jesus in the manager. As I thought about that scene, my mind was taken to contemplate his life and what it means to me. I then wanted to express in my header what came from this child who was born in such humble beginnings. So I merged with the baby Jesus a picture of the Savior in the Garden of Gethsemane with his crucifixion, his resurrection, and his ascension into Heaven. I posted it on my blog with the words, “May we never forget the true meaning of Christmas.” Then only a few hours later I was asked to speak on The Birth of the Savior and what it means to me.
It is hard to put in words my feelings of the Birth of the Savior and what it means to me, but with the limited time I have, I will try.
I feel to rejoice and to burst with joy when I think about Samuel the Lamanite. The Nephites were known for their righteousness and the Lamanites for their wickedness, and yet the Nephites became very wicked. Samuel taught by the Spirit and went where the Spirit directed him.
So, he was sent to preach unto the Nephites and to teach them that doctrine which was rightfully theirs but through wickedness most had become darkened and had rejected the truth. It is not only what he preached and how he preached that brings me to my knees in absolute gratitude. After the Savior appeared to the Nephites, he had their records brought to him. He wanted to know where were the preaching and the prophesying of Samuel the Lamanite.
Truly, That is such an amazing thing. Samuel had preached, nothing short of the words that the Lord wanted him to teach, for he prophesied of him in such simplicity. But, his preachings were not recorded and yet the Savior and Lord of all, asked for his words to be written. To me that gives greater importance to the words that he prophesied than anything else. My heart aches to thank my God and my Savior for caring for all those whom he guides by the Spirit. I think that we all can feel by this that our very lives are not and will not go unnoticed and that he who is mighty to save will set all things in order.
I do not think lightly upon the birth of the Savior because every step leading up to that point were absolute miracles. The very son of God was born into this world, and one may think of the circumstances that would normally be fit for a king to be born, and yet the King of all and Lord of all was born in a manager of straw because there was no room for him in the Inn.
What an amazing child, how must Mary of felt knowing that she was chosen above all women to be the mother of such a child, even the Son of God. I have often pondered on what His brothers and sisters must of felt knowing that their brother was the Savior of the world? I have also thought on many occasions of what great opportunity we have as his brothers and sisters because we have the privilege of seeing all his deeds and studying his life and words. My question to myself and to you is; do we carry that great opportunity and responsibility lightly, do we take the time to build our relationship with Him. Simply knowing of the stories of Jesus is not sufficient, we must personally get to know Him. I know that I need to improve my relationship with Him. I can vividly remember the moment when the Spirit bore testimony to me, like never before, that all that is written of the Savior and His life is true, as true as I am here before you. I have always known, but now I truly know without any doubt and not of myself only but because the Spirit bore testimony to me. I now have a great responsibility to testify of Him, for now I know. All those that have that testimony of the Savior have the same responsibility to share our testimony.
I also love how Ammon and Aaron taught King Lamoni and his father about God and his Christ and the plan of salvation. Did not King Lamoni and his father say that they would give up all their sins to know him and to know how they could obtain eternal life. Here are the words of the father of King Lamoni:
15 And it came to pass that after Aaron had expounded these things unto him, the king said: aWhat shall I do that I may have this eternal life of which thou hast spoken? Yea, what shall I do that I may be bborn of God, having this wicked spirit crooted out of my breast, and receive his Spirit, that I may be filled with joy, that I may not be cast off at the last day? Behold, said he, I will give up dall that I possess, yea, I will forsake my kingdom, that I may receive this great joy.18 O God, Aaron hath told me that there is a God; and if there is a God, and if thou art God, wilt thou make thyself known unto me, and I will give away all my sins to know thee, and that I may be raised from the dead, and be saved at the last day. And now when the king had said these words, he was struck aas if he were dead.
What great faith, he was even willing to forsake his kingdom. Alma the younger and Nephi gave up the Judgment seat which is similar to giving up a kingdom and for what purpose? The rich man that came to the Savior was asked to sell his riches and give to the poor and he could not. Why is it that some will give all and even die to know God and others can not let go of the things of the world?
What are we willing to give up to know our Savior and build a relationship with him? The Savior has told us repeatedly “For whosoever will save his life shall lose it: and whosoever will blose his life for my sake shall cfind it (Matt 16:25).” I desire that I may be able to grasp hold of even a fraction of the spirit and love of righteousness that these great men had. We all know the great scripture about Moroni,
Yea, verily, verily I say unto you, if all men had been, and were, and ever would be, like unto aMoroni, behold, the very powers of hell would have been shaken forever; yea, the bdevil would never have power over the hearts of the children of men.
Now, let me share with you the very next verse,
18 Behold, he was a man like unto aAmmon, the son of Mosiah, yea, and even the other sons of Mosiah, yea, and also Alma and his sons, for they were all men of God.
When we desire to give up all that we have to know the Savior we will find greater power to resist the temptations of the adversary and we too can be like unto Moroni and these other great men. And there is no doubt in my mind that the women that stood next to these great men were truly great women.
All along the way the Savior said that “there is none agood but one, that is, God (Matt 19:17)”. He never took the credit. I desire to be more like him. What does the birth of the Savior mean to me? My reply is everything for with this noble birth came nothing short of salvation for all who will believe in his name and follow in his footsteps.
2 Nephi 31:12
And also, the voice of the Son came unto me, saying: He that is baptized in my name, to him will the Father agive the Holy Ghost, like unto me; wherefore, bfollow me, and do the things which ye have seen me do.
One of those footsteps that we must follow put the Savior into the river of Jordon to be baptised. He who needed no baptism, stepped into the waters and was baptised.
2 Nephi 31:13
Wherefore, my beloved brethren, I know that if ye shall afollow the Son, with full purpose of heart, acting no bhypocrisy and no deception before God, but with real cintent, repenting of your sins, witnessing unto the Father that ye are dwilling to take upon you the ename of Christ, by fbaptism—yea, by following your Lord and your Savior down into the water, according to his word, behold, then shall ye receive the Holy Ghost; yea, then cometh the gbaptism of fire and of the Holy Ghost; and then can ye speak with the htongue of angels, and shout praises unto the Holy One of Israel.
We must follow him into baptism. Another footstep was that of service, he taught that “whosoever of you will be the achiefest, shall be servant of all (Mark 10:44). We must serve others with a Christlike attitude. Another footstep was into repentance. The Savior needed no repentance but he went below all things and he suffered for every sin, sickness, infirmity, and more. In the words of the Savior himself,
Which asuffering caused myself, even God, the greatest of all, to tremble because of pain, and to bleed at every pore, and to suffer both body and spirit—and would that I might bnot drink the bitter cup, and shrink—
We must repent in order to have such a gift as the atonement work in our lives if not we will have to suffer as he did. There are many other footsteps that he took, that we too must follow if we desire to be like him and go where he is. He has promised us:
2 Nephi 31:17-2117 Wherefore, do the things which I have told you I have seen that your Lord and your Redeemer should do; for, for this cause have they been shown unto me, that ye might know the gate by which ye should enter. For the gate by which ye should enter is repentance and abaptism by water; and then cometh a bremission of your sins by fire and by the Holy Ghost.18 And then are ye in this astrait and narrow bpath which leads to eternal life; yea, ye have entered in by the gate; ye have done according to the commandments of the Father and the Son; and ye have received the Holy Ghost, which cwitnesses of the dFather and the Son, unto the fulfilling of the promise which he hath made, that if ye entered in by the way ye should receive.19 And now, my beloved brethren, after ye have gotten into this strait and narrow apath, I would ask if all is bdone? Behold, I say unto you, Nay; for ye have not come thus far save it were by the word of Christ with unshaken cfaith in him, drelying wholly upon the merits of him who is mighty to esave.21 And now, behold, my beloved brethren, this is the away; and there is bnone other way nor cname given under heaven whereby man can be saved in the kingdom of God. And now, behold, this is the ddoctrine of Christ, and the only and true doctrine of the eFather, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost, which is fone God, without end. Amen.
It is truly hard to express my feelings for the Savior and what his birth gave to me. I will forever reverence his great name and every time I see him in the manger I will take a moment to reflect on its meaning to me. I love my Savior more that words can tell, and I say these things in the name of Jesus Christ, Amen.
I just wanted to take a minute to introduce me and my family. I am Kiera Conover and a few minutes you will be able to hear from my wonderful husband Craig Conover and if you listen real well you will probably be able to hear from a few of our girls, too. We have been in the ward for just about 2 months. We have 4 little girls Lacie who is 5, Alexa is 3, Ashlyn who will be 2 in January and Kembri who is 2 months old. We are from AZ. And we are really excited to be here.
I want to begin today by reading a few verses out of Luke 2. Verses 11-14 It reads:
12 And this shall be a asign unto you; Ye shall find the babe wrapped in swaddling clothes, lying in a manger.
Pres. Ezra Taft Benson said, “The most important event in the history of the world was the birth of Jesus Christ. From the days of Adam to John the Baptist—some four millennia—righteous men and women looked to the day of His heralded birth. Prophets foretold the event, and sacrifices, symbolism, and signs portended His birth.
Many prophets in the scriptures prophesied of the birth of the Savior. The Nephites waited years for the sign of His birth. Righteous men and women looked toward the birth of Christ for thousands of years. And even now millions of people every year take the time to celebrate his birth. There are so many reasons his birth is so important. He taught us by example the importance of Baptism, of Service, of Charity, He taught of Christ like love, He atoned for the sins of all mankind in the Garden of Gethsemane and because of him we too can be resurrected someday.
I am so grateful for our Heavenly Father for sending down his son, I am so grateful to Mary for being worthy to be the mother of the Son of God. And I am so thankful to our dear elder brother Jesus Christ to have so much love for us that he would come down and teach us and suffer so much for each and ever one of us. I love the hymn I Stand all Amazed, it describes my feelings so well:
I stand all amazed at the love Jesus offers me,
Confused at the grace that so fully he proffers me.
I tremble to know that for me he was crucified,
That for me, a sinner, he suffered, he bled and died.
I marvel that he would descend from his throne divine
To rescue a soul so rebellious and proud as mine,
That he should extend his great love unto such as I,
Sufficient to own, to redeem, and to justify.
Oh, it is wonderful that he should care for me
Enough to die for me!
Oh, it is wonderful, wonderful to me!
Jesus Christ loves each and every one of us so much. He knows us. He cares for us probably more than we can even really comprehend. I love so much at this time of year, even in a world that Satan is trying so hard to get us to forget about our Savior and our Heavenly Father, people still take the time to stop and reflect on and not only reflect celebrate the Birth of our Savior, Jesus Christ. Many call it the Spirit of Christmas but what it is the Spirit of Christ. When we take the time to think about what is really important and to try to be more Christ like, we become more charitable, we become more loving.
In the 9 days approaching is the celebration of the birth of our Savior, Jesus Christ, I would like you to think how you would have felt to have been alive a little over 2000 years ago and to know that in 9 days the Messiah would come into the world and the prophecies fulfilled. Now think about today, We have been given prophesies foretelling the glorious return of our Savior. As we watch we are seeing these prophesies being fulfilled. We don’t know when the Savior will come again. But just as the prophets of old looked toward his birth, we can look toward him coming again.
President Benson Said,
“Because Jesus Christ is God—even the Son of God—He will come again as He promised. He will come in a day of wickedness—a time when men and women will be “eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage.” He will come at a time of great upheaval and tribulation when “the whole earth shall be in commotion.” He will come as a thief in the night, when the world least expects Him to come: “But of that day, and hour, no one knoweth; no, not the angels of God in heaven, but my Father only.”
I know Jesus lives. I know He was born unto the Virgin Mary. I know he is the Son of God. And I know he will return again.
In Isaiah 9:6 it reads,
“For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given: and the government shall be upon his shoulder: and his name shall be called Wonderful, Counsellor, The mighty God, The everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace” (Isaiah 9:6).
During this Christmas season I challenge you to take the time to reflect on the birth of Jesus Christ even more then you have in previous years. I challenge you to try even harder to follow in the example he has given unto to us, spread his love that he has for each and every one of us and I know as we do that we will find more peace and more Happiness.
I want to bear my testimony that I know this is the true gospel of Jesus Christ. I know that he is at the head of this church and he is leading it. I know that Gordon B. Hinckley is a true prophet of God, just as in the days of old we have a prophet guiding us today. I know that because the gospel was restored I am able to be sealed to my family for time and all eternity. I love my Savior and I am so thankful for all that he has done for us.
Click here for printable version.
I have been doing a lot of studying and pondering the things that I have been learning about. It is amazing how when we dedicate ourselves to study, prayer, and pondering how the Spirit will distill upon us and solidify our learning or take it to new heights. I am thankful for such a gift from my Father in heaven. This morning I was taught about the importance of our bodies. I realized how important our bodies are to exalt ourselves. Because we have been given bodies we have the means to perfect ourselves and become gods. It is important to note that we of ourselves can not exalt ourselves but because the Savior has paid the price for us it is now left to us to decide to rise or fall and we have all that we need to achieve our desires.
Spencer W Kimball said, “It seems that evil is always about us. It has been speculated by one of the earlier Brethren that there are hundreds of evil spirits working against each of us. Accordingly, we must be alert constantly. We catalogue our weaknesses and move in against them to overcome them. Christ became perfect through overcoming. Only as we overcome shall we become perfect and move toward godhood. As I have indicated previously, the time to do this is now, in mortality.” (Miracle of Forgiveness, Life Seeks Perfection)
I love how he said that we must overcome and in a previous chapter he quoted Ralph Parlette who said, “Strength and struggle go together. The supreme reward of struggle is strength. Life is a battle and the greatest joy is to overcome. The pursuit of easy things makes men weak. Do not equip yourselves with superior power and hope to escape the responsibility and work. It cannot be done. It is following the lines of least resistance that makes rivers and men crooked.” (Miracle of Forgiveness, Abandonment of sin)
To put the two together, in order to overcome we must not take the road of lest resistance, we must constantly be growing and striving to become better. If we do slip into a path of little resistance we must immediate repent.
Elder Melvin J. Ballard said about repentance, “A man may receive the priesthood and all its privileges and blessings, but until he learns to overcome the flesh, his temper, his tongue, his disposition to indulge in the things God has forbidden, he cannot come into the celestial kingdom of God-he must overcome either in this life or in the life to come. But this life is the time in which men are to repent. Do not let any of us imagine that we can go down to the grave not having overcome the corruptions of the flesh and then lose in the grave all our sins and evil tendencies. They will be with us. They will be with the spirit when separated from the body.
Clearly it is difficult to repent in the spirit world of sins involving physical habits and actions. There one has spirit and mind but not the physical power to overcome a physical habit.”
I have heard people say that the Lord will not keep someone out of the Celestial kingdom for cussing or whatever it may be and this was just answered. If we do not overcome all the temptations of the evil one while in this live we must suffer and overcome them in the life to come before we may enter the Celestial kingdom. He also tells us that it is not easy to repent in the life to come. We are told this in the scriptures.
31 Yea, I would that ye would come forth and aharden not your hearts any longer; for behold, now is the time and the bday of your csalvation; and therefore, if ye will repent and dharden not your hearts, immediately shall the great plan of redemption be brought about unto you.
33 And now, as I said unto you before, as ye have had so many awitnesses, therefore, I beseech of you that ye do not bprocrastinate the day of your crepentance until the end; for after this day of life, which is given us to prepare for eternity, behold, if we do not improve our time while in this life, then cometh the dnight of edarkness wherein there can be no labor performed.
34 Ye cannot say, when ye are brought to that awful acrisis, that I will repent, that I will return to my God. Nay, ye cannot say this; for that same spirit which doth bpossess your bodies at the time that ye go out of this life, that same spirit will have power to possess your body in that eternal world.
Also we are told what suffering will be required for those that choose to not repent,
17 But if they would not repent they must asuffer even as I;
18 Which asuffering caused myself, even God, the greatest of all, to tremble because of pain, and to bleed at every pore, and to suffer both body and spirit—and would that I might bnot drink the bitter cup, and shrink.
Now that we know that we must repent while in this life and rise to new heights that we may be able to again come into the presence of our Father in Heaven, Spencer W Kimball said,
“All that has been said and written on this subject should warn the worthy from the beginning not to get entangled in iniquity, but it should not be construed to suggest that it is futile to start again when one has reverted to sin. Being a god in embryo with the seeds of godhood neatly tucked away in him, and with the power to become a god eventually, man need not despair. He should not give up. If he has had problems and slipped from the path of rectitude and right, he must stop in his headlong slipping and turn and transform himself. He must begin again. If he slips, he must regain his footing and protect himself from further slipping and return to the sin no more. If in his weakness he fails time and time again, he still should not despair but should make each new effort stronger than the last.”
The journey upward to our Father in Heaven requires all our energy. It is not easy, and we must be careful that we choose wisely when choosing our master. “No man can aserve btwo masters; for either he will hate the one and love the other, or else he will hold to the one and despise the other. Ye cannot serve God and Mammon” (3 Nephi 13:24 and Matthew 6:24). Elder Richard G. Scott of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles explains how this is true, Satan “ties strings to the mind and body so that he can manipulate one like a puppet” (Ensign, May 1986, p. 11). Likewise, Bishop Victor L. Brown, former Presiding Bishop, warned us that “if Satan could but capture our minds, he would have won the battle and the war” (Ensign, Nov. 1974, p. 104). Although this may seem scary and overwhelming at times, the Prophet Joseph Smith taught us that those with bodies have power over those, including Satan, without bodies. “The devil has no power over us only as we permit him,” (Teachings of the Prophet Joseph Smith, p. 181).” So we have all the power within us to rise above evil and choose the true master and our creator and live forever with Him. We learn from the scriptures, “There hath no temptation ataken you but such as is common to man: but God is faithful, who will not suffer you to be btempted above that ye are able; but will with the ctemptation also make a way to descape, that ye may be able to ebear it” (1 Corinthians 10:13). Now in Alma we find the key to not being tempted above that we can bear, “But that ye would humble yourselves before the Lord, and call on his holy name, and awatch and pray continually, that ye may not be btempted above that which ye can bear, and thus be cled by the Holy Spirit, becoming humble, dmeek, submissive, patient, full of love and all long-suffering” (Alma 13:28). We can clearly see that there is great effort required on our part to come unto God and to prepare ourselves against all the fiery darts of the adversary, but we can do it and we must put forth the effort required so that we can return with honor to our Savior.
I would like to bear my testimony that I am forever grateful to my Father in Heaven for giving me such a gift as my body. For because he has given me this body, with that comes power over evil spirits and those who serve them. I am thankful for the power of prayer in which comes the power to control our bodies in ways which seem impossible without that help from on high. I know that if we would take extra time daily to spend a few more moments communing with our Heavenly Father and His Christ that we will find with us greater strength and greater happiness, and one day we will find ourselves back in Their presence wrapped in their joy and glory. Not only will we be wrapped in their joy and glory but it will be sweet unto us because we have overcome the world and been sanctified by fire and we will delight in all things that are righteous and despise all sin. I further testify that we can obtain such joy and love of righteousness in this life as did Captain Moroni, for if we were like him than “the very powers of hell would [be] shaken forever; yea, the bdevil would never have power over the hearts of the children of men.” I say these things in the name of Jesus Christ Amen.
Written by Craig Conover on 11/7/07.


Recently, Albert Mohler posted a blog about homosexual marriages (Found here). One of the questions that flows out of that blog was whether or not a christian committed to the biblical truth on marriage and homosexuality should attend a homosexual wedding.
Here is the question for this week:
Would you attend a homosexual wedding? Would your answer be "yes" or "no" across the board or would it be situational? If it is situational, what criterias do you use to determine when it would be OK and when it would not be. However you answer, make sure you have a scripture or two to explain and support your thinking process.


Here is an inspired thought for the moment:
I was cleaning my room and trying on different clothes to see if I wanted to keep them. In the process I began critquing myself, thinking that I am not beautiful enough. Look how easily the devil sneaks those lies into your head? Too easily...but our human nature wants to conform to the things of this world when instead we must be transformed by God daily. I have been struggling the last few months with some very personal issues. I am honest so believe me I will be discrete yet truthful about what's been going on in my life.
For the past two or three months I have been dealing with whether I am good enough, whether I am worth to have as a friend, a girlfriend, even a daughter. My faults seem to have outweighed the strengths in my mind. I have been reading books about battling with the mind and the strongholds created by Satan. Though I have been reading them, I have not been receiving them fully. I need to battle against the lies that I am not worth it, that I am not beautiful, and that I am not good enough to be loved. I know I am loved by my Papa here on earth and that I have many people on this earth that care about me but Satan won out on my mind. I believed that though God has given me many gifts, people, and life I am no good and will never become anyone worth caring for.
Something I have always had an issue with is wanting to control everything around me, commanding the attention of a room and wanting to fix my own problems. Your thinking...wow she has issues. Ha. Your tellin me. I have no clue how I got here besides believing that I can do everything on my own. I grew up knowing the Lord and learning about him from a very young age yet in retrospect I know nothing about him. His nature is deep and I must be "in the vine" in order to fully begin to know him. I have been wondering to myself why I have not been able to move past this certain point in my walk and in my life. Wondering why all of the same things continually happen to me. You know what I found out. I am running on a hamster wheel of my own creation thinking things will change with my own might. BIG FAT LIE from the Father of Lies.
I am beautiful child of God the Father Almighty who has perfect plans for me. He formed me in his image and has made me that I might love and serve him. <---that a="a" all="all" am="am" and="and" any="any" at="at" awful="awful" been="been" before="before" beginning="beginning" but="but" by="by" calm="calm" can="can" coming="coming" did="did" earth="earth" fall="fall" few="few" for="for" god="god" had="had" has="has" have="have" he="he" here="here" him.="him." him="him" hits="hits" ho="ho" i="i" important="important" in="in" is="is" it="it" knees="knees" know="know" lately="lately" lies="lies" life="life" like="like" love="love" me="me" megs.="megs." more="more" my="my" of="of" on="on" one.="one." one="one" over...="over..." over="over" papa="papa" past="past" person="person" plaguing="plaguing" pleading="pleading" question="question" realize="realize" reason.="reason." satan="satan" saying="saying" see="see" sneakily="sneakily" some="some" span="span" storm.="storm." struggle="struggle" surrender="surrender" than="than" that="that" the="the" these="these" this="this" to="to" too...who="too...who" tsumani="tsumani" want="want" why="why" will.="will." will="will" worship="worship" worshiping="worshiping" wow="wow" years="years" yes="yes" you="you">
Here are a few:---that>
1) I need a tangible person (guy) to fulfill my needs here on earth...just by simply having him to talk to. The others that have hurt you make you who you are and you will never find anyone better.
2) I am not pretty enough or deserving enough for someone as wonderful as the Lord has for me in the future.
3) God doesn't really care about me. I am just a pawn in this game of life.
4) I am not a good enough friend and will never be. No one truly cares about me.
5) Your gifts are no use to you because you will never succeed in using them.
6) All the promises the Lord has made will be broken.
My now realization that all of these are blatant lies that Satan has slyfully enticed me with. I used this illustration when I was talking to someone recently. Its like Satan is holding something in his hand and you dont know what it is so you walk toward him unaware of what is going to happen next. As you walk closer you can feel the emotions of life begin to set in of anger, jealousy, frustration, lust, etc. Soon they envelope you and dont even realize it. Its like a poison that you will slowly choke on. There are many things right now that I am struggling with. One of those things is anger and bitterness towards someone who has hurt me deeply. Every negative thing I have written on this page can be squashed by the simple reading and studying of THE WORD! Now all I have to do is begin to dive into what the Lord has for me. I have several important decisions to make in the days, weeks, and months to come. I must begin the process of removing the rocks and filling in the holes that are in my "garden." I must begin to prepare myself for the great things that Lord has for me and amazing love that I am going to fall into. =) Thank God for giving me revelation on all of these things and letting me realize that I need to focus solely on him. No man can satisfy the desire my heart has for the love of the Lord. NO MAN!
I love you all and hope that this helps someone who reads it. God Bless! Keep pressing in. Your beautiful and created for a purpose that God alone knows...in time with him he will begin to reveal it!


Let’s explore Love together.
How do you perceive God’s love for you?
Do you feel you need to earn it?
Do you wonder if God’s love is meant for you?
Do you see the overflow of God’s love in your own life toward others?
How will you manifest Love this week?
“Little children, let us not love with word or
with tongue, but in deed and truth”
(1 John 3:18).
We continue our study of Catherine Ponder's The Prospering Power of Prayer and look at Chapter 5 Prayer in Pictures.
Here is a preview of some of the ideas we will discuss this weekend:
You can picture a thing and bring it through
Rather than trying to reason it through or force it through.
You can hasten your good through picturing!
Results have to be planned.
Prosperity is a planned result.
When we visualize with the help of a Wheel of Fortune
We are really praying and imaging our good;
We are changing the current of our thinking
From negative to positive,
From despair to hope,
From discouragement to encouragement.
Keep quiet about what you are picturing,
so that you will not talk your good away.
This is from our lesson where we discussed how our thoughts create our experience in the world and how we can influence our thinking.
Thanks to Faith Rivera for background music. Check her out @ FaithRivera.com
This is a brief excerpt from a Sunday gathering. enjoy
Here's a presentation on what we believe in Unity. Enjoy!


What makes a great leader? This question often plays a role in our lives when we are placed under circumstances to choose the person to lead us. In this nation where social pressures often affect our decisions, it is hard to navigate through the chaos of who might be fit to lead, or whom can live up to our expectations.
Being a leader doesn’t mean that the leader gets first place and is entitled before those who are under them. Instead leading confers a mountain of responsibilities that requires commitment, determination, and perseverance. A great leader often has humility in the forefront of their decisions. A great leader puts themselves in the shoes of those who follow them. Finally, a great leader isn’t afraid to fail in the face of a raging storm.
Everyone needs inspiration, whether it is something we are willing to admit or not. It is human nature to find something to cling to that provides a light through the tunnel of things to come. Arizona’s chapter of Women’s Federation for World Peace is very humbled to call one of their leaders, Rhia Nkulu, their very own example of a great leader. Mrs. Nkulu’s inspiration comes from her faith in God, that his work will be done regardless of the trials the organization faces. Through the uncertainty of things unseen, Mrs. Nkulu’s faith and hard work enabled a community to come together and host WFWP’s 25th Anniversary event in Arizona, that will never be forgotten. Through the faith of one woman, a light spread forth that lit a fire under those who witnessed her commitment and brought inspiration to a community to become the change they wished to witness within themselves.
Mrs. Nkulu continues to thrive from the strength of her faith. She has learned to live in humility and putting others before her. The success of the event that was hosted under her guidance comes from her love and from a place that is often overlooked, a place of prayer and the grace from a faith that is freely given.
Time and time again while attending the meetings to organize WFWP’s 25 Anniversary Celebration in Arizona, faith in prayer was always at the forefront. The consistency of her commitment and selfless attitude drove her and the rest of us and allowed her to overcome the impossible. Her love and courage not only brought consistent attention to the importance of community, but also gave motivation to those who were struggling, to look past the disappointments they encountered. Mrs. Nkulu chooses to rejoice over the difficult circumstances that life continues to hurl her way.
Her constancy comes from her faith in God, knowing that He will never fail her. Having witnessed the efforts and inspiration of a heart so willing, has brought a sense of direction to her life that is filled with battles that appear to be unbearable when I look at them. It is easy to say that one confides in their faith. But I have witnessed that once one truly confides in God, there are no limitations, however high the mountains may seem. Needless to say, when you are not afraid of the level of difficulty that you are trying to accomplish, but instead have faith and know that things under the will of God will always flourish, that little faith is all that is needed to make something beautiful happen.
WFWP Arizona Chapter Chairwoman, Rhia Nkulu is a wonderful example of a great leader who allows others to shine and gives credit to working together under the hand of God, to whom she gives the ultimate credit.


Clayton Jennings Ministry
Because of the historical impact of the life and ministry of Jesus', his life's work was from a variety of point of views on scandal after another.
Case in point, the lowly birth. His mom Mary a teenage mommy and a virgin ... seriously? The|narrative of the spotless conception redefines "crisis pregnancy."
Let's get into his public ministry. He was "inactive" as far as being beyond the general public eye for the first thirty years of his life. Scripture does not have numerous references to his youth or teenage years, conserve for the reality we know he impressed lots of spiritual leaders in the temple at a young age (Luke 2:46 -50).
Jesus performed numerous miracles. From turning water into wine to recovery a male born blind. The immediate curing of ten individuals who were plagued by leprosy. The raising of Lazarus from the dead, the feeding of thousands with a few fish and a couple of loaves of bread provided by a young kid. Not to mention that truth that Peter strolled on water. The religious leaders of the day could not describe these miracles. And since they could not understand it, they could not let it stand. They needed to make an example of this man who dines with sinners and performs works of marvel.
They asked themselves- "Who Precisely who is this male? And where does he obtain such mysterious and yet undeniable powers?"
Nevertheless the biggest scandal of Jesus' life isn't really exactly what he did. It's is exactly what he stated ... about himself.
" Very truly, I tell you, anybody who hears my word and believes him who sent me has immortality, and does not come under judgment, however has passed from death to life." John 5:24
" Those who eat my flesh and drink my blood have immortality, and I will raise them up on the last day; for my flesh holds true food and my blood is true drink." John 6:54 -55.
" I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will never ever stroll in darkness but will have the light of life." John 8:12.
" I am the way, the reality and the life. NOBODY concerns the Father other than through me." John 14:6.
Scandalous-blasphemous declarations like this would get any guy or female nailed to a tree in an unpleasant death sentence. And a lawbreaker's death is exactly what Jesus got. Jesus was completely beaten, tortured and embarrassed in complete view of the leaders of the Jewish faith. Those very same individuals in power thought that the scandal died with Jesus. But they did unknown the whole story.
Then, three days later on, never mind that armed guards were positioned right outside the burial place of Jesus (and that the rock in front of the burial place was more bouldered size than anything else) Clayton Jennings Jesus' burial place was discovered empty. And so for 40 days after his resurrection the scandal of Jesus continued. He advised his disciples to continue the scandal Clayton Jennings by taking the excellent news of the biggest scandal ever informed to all countries.
Fortunately is a story of the outrageous, wreckless love of God, for people who rebel, take him for granted and deal with each other inadequately. Fortunately is that we don't get what we deserve. We get Clayton Jennings grace.
If you wish to find clayton jennings profile out more about Clayton Jennings, his ministry or upcoming dates for his revival please check out him at ClaytonJennings.com.
Clayton Jennings Ted Talk
You can support his ministry by Clayton Jennings looking for his upcoming spoken word album at shopclaytonjennings.com. His brand-new Spoken Word album is entitled "Farewell Faith" is due out Mid February 2018.


MEDITATION FOR GRANT
Rev. Robert Parrish
St. John’s MCC
622 Maywood Ave/Raleigh
July 20, 2019
David, the writer of Psalm 23 knew the hardships of life. As a child, he knew what it was to protect his sheep from being eaten by wolves or wandering off into areas of danger. When he grew up to be king, he knew what it was to fight for the protection of his people, and to preserve his own life. There must have been times when he wandered about the presence of God. There is no doubt that he had many questions for God, and even expressed frustration and anger. One only has to look at Psalm 6 to find a glimpse of this. In this psalm he cries out to God in the midnight hour, and in his anguish seeks answers.
In the life of David we find where he did find comfort from God. In Psalm 51 we find where God loves him and provides forgiveness for his many sins. In the reading from the psalm today there is insight, where David found peace in green pastures; healing and comfort was given to him even when he was at the brink. David, a human being, knew both struggle and comfort.
None of us will fully know why Grant left us. Perhaps he was dealing with pressures and situations that were too hard to bear. In his dying, he leaves us two messages: One message is be more aware of those who are asking for help. Yes, even help them figure out the kind of help and support they need. Another message is to love everybody you can. This kind of love is not a flowery and mushy kind. It is a kind of love that is with some one in their darkest hour. It is a kind of love that accepts where a person is and helps them to their best resolutions. This type of love and support is not easy; but with the help of God we can do the best we can.
To the homeless community: Grant is one that lived among us. May we remember the fun times we shared and the good memories we have. May we also work and pray for better support and care so that we may live our best lives and to their fullest extent.
To his family and close friends: I wouldn’t pretend the words or sentences that would describe what you are feeling. What I do believe is that the same comfort that David experienced from God is available to you also. The prophet Isaiah writes “God will keep you in perfect peace if you keep your mind on him”. As you work towards healing and peace in your own time please know that there is a community of care and love for you. We will be praying for you.
The God of comfort, peace, and love is with and for us all. They are available to us whether in times of struggle or in times when we are doing well. The love of God is with us when times are bad or when they are good. May you all know the comfort, peace and love of God….Amen.


Meet the Founder of Olive Tree Ministries
Janette Stone, the director and founder of Olive Tree Ministries, has spent most of her life helping others through God’s word. She was born and raised in the Detroit, Michigan area. After teaching in the public schools, starting a pre-school, getting married and having three sons, her husband’s work brought her to Wisconsin. She has now been in Wisconsin for over 30 years.
After opening two pre-school facilities in Fond du Lac, she found herself being sought out as a speaker on the topic of children. “Through speaking, people want to talk to you and that evolved into counseling,” says Janette. Janette created JS Ministries (Janette Stone Ministries) and, as a Christian counselor, applied God’s word as the opportunities presented themselves through her counseling of individuals, families, adults, and children. JS Ministries later changed its name to Olive Tree Ministries. “This ministry is used for truly helping people. What was said years ago is still used today and is still workable in today’s culture,” says Janette.
“Our society is becoming so serious that we do crazy things to relieve ourselves. We need to try not to lose sight and remember to have fun in life,” Janette has commented. Maybe that is why one cannot help but feel a sense of energy and youthfulness about Janette.
Janette is a well-respected Bible teacher, inspirational speaker, author, and Christian counselor. She has written five books, The Mommy Person, The Daddy Person, The Sandbox, Sick Henry, and New Shoes and has developed a series called Henry Talks to God. She uses the truths of the Scripture in a humorous and forthright way and is sought after as a keynote speaker by service clubs, churches, retreats, and conferences. A great deal of her time is spent in counseling others and in study. She is truly a Christian example, a teacher of the Word, and lives her life accordingly.


I just finished reading the blog of some Trinity sponsored missionaries in Uganda (http://paradoxuganda.blogspot.com/) and am still overwhelmed by the testimony of God’s provision for their medical mission there. Government and NGO funding ran out for one of their nutritional programs, and through word of mouth (and blog) individuals have stepped in to give money towards covering the cost of maintaining this program for an entire year! The monthly budget is $1600, which covers food and supplies for about 50 children at $1 per child per day.
Obviously this is an incredible blessing to the Myhre family and to the children they serve, but it is also such a huge reminder of how God provides through his people. Every time I read this blog my heart hurts to see the physical pain these people live in, but I also rejoice knowing God is caring for them through these organizations and through the daily labor and prayers of His people in Uganda. I admit, I am jealous to see God work like this in my own small-town American life. To have needs so BIG that only God could provide…. And to give Him praise for His provision.
The thing is, although our meals are all but a guarantee here and we have access to education and health care… we are not without need. I myself have believed the lie that we are capable. A problem? We can fix it. Sometimes a crisis hits, and we hit our knees… but most days I can go through my daily routine and even my work in a church and could have never asked the Lord for His help. There is a balance, of course; I am not suggesting that we are devoid of any reasoning, capabilities, or talents and helplessly need a divine babysitter. I am suggesting that if I knew, really knew, God’s power and strength and believed Him for what He has promised I would acknowledge that I want to be a part of what He is doing every day.
Philippians calls us to step out of our anxiety and into prayer, asking God with thanksgiving to give us His peace and meet us in our need. It doesn’t say, Call when you REALLY need me. How many times a day do you get anxious? Stressed? I want to learn to ask Him to meet me in the little things, and to pray that He will show up in a BIG way.
It is tempting to me to go to Africa again—to experience the overwhelming need and rely on Jesus being alive to get us through each day. That would almost be easier than staying here in Charlottesville, pushing aside my “ability” and relying on Jesus. How do you pray Africa-sized prayers in a small town?


MSO Chorus presents Handel’s MessiahBy
Handel’s Messiah Oratorio for the Easter Season will be presented by the Meridian Symphony Chorus on Sunday, April 11, 2010 at Highland Baptist Church at 2:30 p.m. Singers and orchestra will be conducted by Dr. Bob Hermetz, assisted by organist David Benson. The MSO Chorus will be joined by the Columbus Choral Society conducted by Doug Browning. Soloists will be Heather Clancey, mezzo-soprano, Diane Key, soprano, Chris O’Rear, bass, and Bob Hermetz, tenor.
Messiah presents the Easter Passion story through glorious choruses and solos, including “Behold the Lamb of God”, “Hallelujah” and “Worth is the Lamb Who was Slain”, among others. Text for Messiah is in English and is entirely Biblical, foretelling the suffering, death, and resurrection of Christ. It is the most popular and frequently performed oratorio by any composer. What is perhaps more remarkable is that Messiah was composed in the short span of twenty four days, from August 22 to September 14, 1742! This Easter offering burst onto the stage of the Musick Hall in Dublin, Ireland, on April 13, 1743.
Meridianites will hear this profound oratorio on April 11, 2010, nearly two-hundred and sixty-seven years later. There will be no admission charged, however, a free-will offering will be takes. Highland Baptist Church is located in north Meridian at 3400 27th Street.


Please warmly welcome the father, son, and holy TikTok spirit. There is no better way to be pumped up for significant events in your life than to ask the combined power of TikTok and the Holy Spirit. Many TikTokers are currently using a catchy slogan to get them through difficult times in their lives, but where did it come from?
Where did the trend start?
The well-known quote from a Celebrity Family Feud shows aired in September. As she waits for her turn, Chynna Phillips, a member of the 1990s pop duo Wilson Phillips, turns to the Holy Spirit and interrupts host Steve Harvey to sing her theme song.
“Activate the Holy Spirit! Holy Spirit, go forth! Chynna clapped, danced, and chanted.
Activate Holy Spirit!
The puzzled host said, “It’s been 11 years; this has never happened.”
Holy Spirit Activate on Family Feud
Singer Chynna began singing and dancing when she was called to answer questions on a September Family Feud episode featuring the pop duo “Wilson Phillips.” Host Steve Harvey was utterly taken aback.
Chynna stopped the host’s explanation of what she was about to do as she began to dance: “Hold on, wait! Activate the Holy Spirit, Activate the Holy Spirit.
The trend’s most well-liked videos to date?
Many certified TikTokers have used the soundbite and customised it with twists (and movements). The soundbite has already been utilised in over 290,000 videos.
Be kind Hannah. 🙄🙏#fyp
👏👏👏 #gmm #rhettandlink #holyspiritactivate
Why is the trend so popular?
People have used their Holy Spirit to prepare for everything from handling toddler tantrums to taking a test due to the soundbite, which has led to some pretty humorous TikToks. Additionally, it’s a soundbite that may be used in a wide range of contexts, which can occasionally be advantageous in the TikTok environment.


Matthew Otto is an innovative leader, educator, and collaborator. As the Assistant Artistic Director of the Toronto Children’s Chorus, Matthew conducts the Toronto Youth Choir, Chorealis, and co-conducts Chorale. He has been privileged to conduct the TCC’s Chamber Choir on tour to Russia, Poland, Latvia, Lithuania, USA, as well as at the 2017 World Choral Symposium in Barcelona. In April 2018, Matthew led the Toronto Youth Choir on its first international tour, travelling to New York City to sing with The King’s Singers in Carnegie Hall. The TCC has also premiered his treble arrangements of works by Bach, Mendelssohn and Vaughan Williams. In December 2015, the TCC premiered his arrangement of Fantasia on Christmas Carols for treble voices with baritone, Russell Braun, and members of the Toronto Symphony Orchestra at Roy Thomson Hall. A recording of this is set to be released on the TCC's upcoming Christmas album.
Committed to choral excellence, Matthew is founder/artistic director of Incontra Vocal Ensemble, a project-based, professional-level chamber choir. Now in its sixth season, Incontra provides high-calibre performance opportunities for emerging singers and conductors. Passionate about music’s role in liturgy, Matthew has served as music director at a number of Toronto churches, including St. Anne’s Anglican Church, Blessed Trinity Roman Catholic Parish, and the Newman Centre, University of Toronto. While at Blessed Trinity, he toured with the choir to Italy, performing in St. Peter's Basilica, the Basilica of St. Francis of Assisi, and other historic venues. In 2014, he was appointed Choir Director & Organist at Christ Church Deer Park where he oversees a vibrant music program.
From 2011-2013, he served as Associate Conductor of Toronto Mendelssohn Choir, where he conducted the ensemble and orchestra. He has prepared both the TMC and TCC for appearances with the Toronto Symphony Orchestra and Peter Oundjian, Nicholas McGegan, Bramwell Tovey, Sir Andrew Davis, and the late Rafael Frühbeck de Burgos. In June 2019, the Toronto Youth Choir will perform Orff's Carmina Burana with the TSO alongside the TMC and TCC, all led by Donald Runnicles.
As a strong advocate for the choral arts in Canada, Matthew served as President of Choirs Ontario from 2015-17 and was a board member of Choral Canada. He has actively contributed to many choral communities in Toronto. In addition to being in demand as a clinician and adjudicator, Matthew has guest conducted the Elora Festival Singers, Toronto Cantata Chorus, University of Auckland Chamber Choir, and Mississauga Summer Chorale. He has also adjudicated at the Kiwanis Music Festival of Guelph and Toronto Kiwanis Festival, in addition to serving on selection committees and juries.
Twice-recipient of the Elmer Iseler Fellowship in Choral Conducting, and finalist in both the Leslie Bell Prize for Choral Conducting (2014) and Sir Ernest MacMillan Foundation Fellowship Award in Orchestral Conducting (2010), Matthew holds a Bachelor of Music in Composition (2007) and a Master of Music in Conducting (2009). His conducting mentors include Doreen Rao, Helmuth Rilling, Karen Grylls, Simon Carrington and Maria Guinand. Currently, Matthew is pursuing a Ph.D. in Music Education at the University of Toronto, where his research interests include belonging, collaboration, agency, and the role of vocal pedagogy in choral music education. He has presented papers at the International Symposium on Singing and Song II and Podium 2018.


A pastor in Pennsylvania has been arrested and charged after impregnating a 15-year-old girl from his youth group during a seven-month sexual relationship.
35 -year-old Wesley Blackburn, the youth pastor at Faith Brethren Bible Church, is married, and his wife told the head pastor, senior pastor Jim Espenshade, that he’d confessed to the relationship before asking for a divorce.
He and other church leaders immediately fired Blackburn, a father of five, and notified police last week.
When a state trooper found him packing his things, he told the officer that he’d begun having sex with the girl back in March. He admitted that he’d fathered the girlâ€™s child as well.
He’d met the girl during his first year at the church in 2009. She’d been in his youth group for seventh and eighth graders since 2014.
Authorities say Blackburn had revealed the affair to his wife just the night before. He told her that he didn’t love her before asking for a divorce.
It was the following morning that she talked with Espenshad.
Blackburn refused to even discuss the allegations with Espenshade and the deacons of the church, so they fired him immediately, according to Espenshade.
“We didn’t even care what he had to say. We don’t tolerate this kind of stuff. It’s inappropriate. It’s reprehensible.â€ Espenshade said. â€œAnd there was never a discussion of anything else. And I donâ€™t mean this in a terrible way: We didnâ€™t care what the community was going to say about us, we had to do what was right.â€
He’s been charged with 84 felony counts of statutory sexual assault, 84 misdemeanor counts of indecent assault, and one felony count of corruption of minors.
He remains in the Bedford County jail with bail set at $200,000.


And from such an understanding of God how can the mystery of Creation be gained? God as God is apart from Creation. St Thomas inserts into a planned outline his various theological treatises, which do not seem to come from a unique and revealed centre. The forced synthesis of Scholastic Theology does not have the coherence of a book like that of the Blessed Julian. With this I do not intend to diminish the greatness of St Thomas, but I do mean to say that the intuition of Blessed Julian is more profound and simple than are the texts of St Thomas. There cannot be for us the possibility of 'knowing' god who mediates grace, except through infused contemplation, from an action of God which comes through your inner potential and which makes you penetrate into his mystery. And St Thomas, shortly before his death, had an extraordinary mystical experience.
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Slowly, while she meditates, her vision deepens and broadens. The simple insight and vision of Christ becomes, for her, a theology which wallpaper embraces all and responds to all problems, resolving them in a united and deepened way, until she finds in love, the reason for all, the beginning and the end of everything. The centre from which this theology emanates is Christ. But what is Christ for Julian? It is precisely the insight that she has of Christ that can justify, in this simple vision, the knowledge of God and humanity, a theology of Time, a theology of Creation. Who is this Christ then whom she contemplates? Christ is, for Julian, everyman, eternal, one, in whom is God and Humanity, in whom is God and his Creation, in whom is all Time. Not even St Thomas Aquinas is so profound. Before the treatise on God in his intimate nature, in his intimate life, traditional theology tends to treat of God as Creator, then the sin, then. For theology follows a preconceived scheme.
Julian discusses this vision of Christ and report in this vision she sees all; humanity, creation and glory, sin and grace, all the 'history of salvation'. All in just this mystery. The truth is not an abstraction, but the translation of a present mystery. It is not solely about a past event, because if it were only a translation of a past event, Christianity would be just history and not theology. Theology must be the conceptual translation of a presence, a conceptual translation of a mystery, in which I participate. Julian of Norwich's Showing of love has a greatness and an importance even for the renewal of Catholic theology. Julian gives us a theology which is truly manifest. In its coherence and in its unity, all proceeds from a unique centre. There are not various treatises here, there are not separate theses; it is all one simple insight, yet one (in which she sees the face of Christ in his Passion) emanating, as with concentric waves, from an entire and whole system of theology, and which.
You do not pray? You are not a theologian.' True theology is prayer animated by the Spirit which can garden examine even the depths of God. It is vain to assume that theology can be studied outside of prayer. To be faithful to julian we must examine what is the centre from which radiates all her theology. Many discuss the nature of God, from Creation; she examines him from his Passion. The 'suffering Christ' is for her at the centre. And in Christ all becomes clear to the soul who contemplates.
The simplicity of the writing, the serenity and the humility of the words, is not just due to English reticence; it is more a witness to the action of grace in a soul that is truly royal. Her book of the Showing of love is shaped as coherent and profound theological teaching. Blessed Julian's theology is excellent because it derives entirely from a mystic experience which she has deepened with forty years of contemplative living. She already had the unity of that experience, giving to it, through her continuing prayer, a largeness and a profundity that is unique in all the history of Christian spirituality. Indeed, julian of Norwich can teach as much as the university-trained theologians who impart the public revelation of the Church. In her their public revelation is not negated; she remains always most humbly devoted to the Church, affirming many times that it is not acceptable ever for any teaching or any revelation to be against that taught by the Church and she draws theological doctrines. Yet one must study the mystics if one wishes to do Theology. Evagrius said: ' pray? You are a theologian.
The Optimism of Julian of Norwich: a contemplative essay
But it was confirmed in the succeeding Showings until the last one, on that same day, in the evening. While the first Showing had lasted from four until nine in the morning, in the afternoon of that same day, the last and most brief Showing was only to confirm all that she had received. All Julian's life was spent contemplating upon, deepening, interiorizing, the teaching that the lord rabota had given her in that Showing. She only lived in the context of that experience. She had no other Showings, nor knew another one, except what deepened this unique gift, except to enter more into the mystery which the lord had revealed to her. Julian had no more need of God's particular grace, her vision being sufficient to nourish her for the rest of her life. In the book called the Showing of love she wrote that the fourteenth Showing of the lord and the servant came to her only after fifteen years of continuous meditation.
She had to wait almost twenty years, meditating continually and praying, before she could penetrate its teaching. Thus her Showing of love is the contemplations of a soul who has lived alone and only in the presence of what the lord had revealed to her. In them Julian was extremely reticent in speaking about herself. Instead, while she writes about the highest things and leaves us breathless, she speaks of these as a humble woman might speak of the most obvious and common things. If she had experienced a great wonder, a certain sense of awe in confronting God who had revealed himself to her when she was thirty, this book was written twenty or thirty years later. She therefore lacks the sense of marvel and wonder that would have arisen from the novelty of the experience. During those years her mind was made one with mystery, breathing that atmosphere, living in that light, finding herself in his world.
She saw her next at the foot of the Cross. She then contemplated her in her eternal glory. In one sole act, which was the dying on the cross, in the mystery of the passion of the lord, all time was contained, all creation is present. In her Showing Julian lived it all. The dimensions of the mystery of the cross are the dimensions even of the universe. This she saw now in these spiritual Showings which accompanied and illustrated her bodily vision.
There were fifteen Showings. Some were of sounds, and these fall into a another kind of vision, different from the first. First there was the physical Showing, which presented itself to her as she gazed upon. Of others she would write ' it seemed to me '. One was of a dream and in the dream she had the impression that the devil had come to strangle her. She startled awake and smelled the stench of sulphur. She asked those about her whether they smelled the burning stench. They had seen nothing, they smelled nothing. Then she doubted the dream that she had had.
Disney star Alyson Stoner opens up about sexuality: 'i
But she was taken up into her vision. The carved and painted face of Christ became alive; from his forehead fell drops of blood, she remembers, like the ' scales of a herring '. For five whole hours the vision lasted and the vision renewed itself in fifteen different ways. She contemplated the face in one way, and in another; now she saw it bloody, then changed into sadness and pallor; now she saw it dead, then, following its death, she saw it transfigured into glory. It seemed to be a bodily resume vision. She said that bodily visions count for little. But the bodily vision was immediately accompanied within her by a spiritual Showing. The Showing of the holy face put her suddenly in contact with the entire framework of Christian theology, so that she could see adam and all Creation, and the end even of the story of salvation and the glorification of the elect. She saw the virgin as she conceived the word, ' like a young girl, ' she said, ' most simple and gracious '.
These two graces, she said, she asked conditionally, according to god's will. The third grace she asked was without any condition: that God would grant her repentence of her sins and the grace to love him. After this prayer, she fell ill and was about to die. The priest was sent for and came with an acolyte, carrying a cross. The priest administered the last Rites; the cleric remained holding the cross before the dying woman. Julian gazed. Then the Crucifix came alive and she had the vision she had desired. One could have had no vision in all one's life that would be as nath right as that one in that moment when she was in agony. All were praying round her as they watched her dying.
church's altar. She lived thus for decades in solitude, in silent contemplation, in humility and in profound joy. Julian could have had a certain amount of learning, but that culture would not have been gained through education, apart from that in a convent. We know really so little about her, yet the simplicity, the elegance of her expressions, are enough to assure us of her nobility. Thomas Merton, speaking of Julian of Norwich, writes, ' rather than 'sister one calls her the 'lady julian' '. One can suppose that she would have dictated her book. Yet the dictation would have been such that the secretary would not have been permitted to change even a comma. Her language has the personal seal of a soul, of a personality. In 1373, when Julian was thirty, she had asked three things of God: to have the grace of a vision of the passion of Christ, because she wished to learn to love him more; to have a mortal illness, because she wished to suffer like.
Book reviews, bibliography, translated, with permission, from don divo barsotti,. F.D., Tre mistici e il loro messaggio ( Vicenza: la locusta, 1980. The optimism of julian of norwich: a outsiders contemplative essay on the showing of love don divo barsotti the illustration is taken from the painting of Julian's Showings in St Gabriel's Chapel, community of All Hallows, ditchingham, suffolk. Painted by the australian artist, Alan Oldfield, it was earlier exhibited in Norwich Cathedral; photographed, sister Pamela,. reproduced by permission of the community of All Hallows and the Friends of Julian. The optimism of julian of norwich ho was Julian of Norwich? We know only a little about her. What we do know is because of a book she has left us, The Showing of love. We know too that about ten years after the composition of her book she was still alive because a certain Margery came to find her in her anchorhold in Norwich's church of St Julian.
Mothers: An Essay on love and Cruelty: Jacqueline rose
The Optimism of Julian of Norwich: a contemplative essay on the 'showing of love'. Julian of norwich, her, showing of love, and its contexts julia bolton holloway. Julian of norwich, showing of love, her texts. Her self, about her texts, before julian, her contemporaries. After julian, julian in our time, st birgitta of sweden. Bible and women, equally in god's image, mirror of saints. Benedictinism, the cloister, its scriptorium, amherst you manuscript, prayer. Catalogue and portfolio (handcrafts, books ).


We take a trip out to the Shenandoah Valley to Berryville, Virginia, the home of the Holy Cross Abbey, a monastery of Trappist monks. We visit the Cool Springs Cemetery chapel and the Abbey gift shop and buy a bunch of their food products, including their world famous fruit cake!
If you want to skip ahead to where we actually taste the products, go to 13:15 in the video!
When we got home, we decided to do a Monastery Mukbang, open everything up and do a taste test of all of the items, including truffles, cinnamon honey, cranberry conserve, asiago cheese crisps, and cranberry orange biscotti, in addition to the world famous fruit cake.
The monks’ website is https://www.virginiatrappists.org and you can order the bakery products online at https://www.monasteryfruitcake.org.
SixBlindKids is NOT sponsored by the monks or anyone else. We’re not sure the monks sponsor YouTube channels; they probably don’t even watch them, but you never know!
There was a PBS documentary about the Holy Cross Abbey done a few years ago. You can watch that here: https://youtu.be/8a53KGwed0Y