Here the lesson summary from April 28, 2013

Loye Painter gave the lesson from a talk by Elder Jeffrey R. Holland, "The First Great Commandment." 
 
There is almost no group in history for whom I have more sympathy than I have for the eleven remaining Apostles immediately following the death of the Savior of the world. I think we sometimes forget just how inexperienced they still were and how totally dependent upon Jesus they had of necessity been. To them He had said, "Have I been so long time with you, and yet hast thou not known me. . .?"

 

Three years isn't long to call an entire Quorum of Twelve Apostles from a handful of new concerts, purge from them the error of old ways, teach them the wonders of the gospel of Jesus Christ, and then leave them to carry on the work. Quite a staggering prospect for a group of newly ordained elders. Repeatedly Jesus had tried to tell them He was not going to remain physically present with them, but they either could not or would not comprehend such a wrenching thought.

 

Then the unthinkable happened. Their Lord and Master, their Counselor and King, was crucified. The struggling little Church He had established seemed doomed to scorn and destined for extinction. His Apostles did witness Him in His resurrected state, but that only added to their bewilderment. As they surely must have wondered, "What do we do now?" they turned for an answer to Peter, the senior Apostle.

 

Elder Holland paraphrases: ... "Peter said, So you ask, 'What do we do now?' I don't know more to tell you than to return to your former life, I intend to go  fishing."  And at least six out of the ten remaining Apostles went with Peter. John, who was one of them, writes, "They went forth, and entered into a ship immediately."

 

The first night back on the lake, they caught nothing. With the first rays of dawn, theydisappointedly turned toward the shore. There,in the distance was a figure who called out to them, "Children, have you caught anything?" And they answered back we have caught nothing." Then the voice said "cast the net on the right side, and with those simple words, recognition begins to flood over them. Now it was happening again. They eagerly lowed their net, and "they were not able to draw it for the multitude of fishes. John said the obvious: "It is the Lord."

 

After a joyful reunion with the resurrected Jesus. Looking at their battered little boats, their frayed nets, and a pile of 153 fish, Jesus said to His senior Apostle, " Peter do you love me more than you love all this?" Peter said, "Yea, Lord; thou knowest that I love thee." The Savior continues to look Peter in the eyes and again said, Peter do you love me?  Undoubtedly confused a bit, Peter answered a second time, "Yea, Lord; thou knowest that I love thee.  And then the third time the Savior asked, "Peter, do you love me?"  Almost automatically, Peter said for the third time. "Lord, . . . thou knowest that I love thee."

 

To which Jesus responded [Elder Holland's non-scriptural elaboration].... Wasn't it obvious then and isn't it obvious now that if I want fish, I can get fish? What I need, Peter, are disciples-- and I need them forever, I need someone to feed my sheep and save my lambs. I need someone to preach my gospel and defend my faith. I need someone who loves me, truly, truly loves me, and loves what our Father in Heaven has commissioned me to do.

 

The first and greatest commandment of them all is--"Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy strength, and with all thy mind."

 

And if at such a moment we can stammer out, "Yea, Lord, thou knowest that I love thee," then He may remind us. The crowning characteristic of life is always loyalty.

 

Jesus said, "If ye love me, keep my commandments."

 

We have neighbors to bless, children to protect, the poor to lift up, and the truth to defend. We have wrongs to make right, truths to share, and good to do.

In short, we have a life of devoted discipleship to give in demonstrating our love of the Lord.

 

Thank you so much, Loye, for the wonderful lesson.

Stake Conference May 4-5, 2013

Stake Conference will be held May 4-5, 2013

Adult Session:  Saturday May 4, 6:00 pm held at the 15th 16th ward building (125 W 600 N) for all adults 18 years and over.

Priesthood Leadership Session:  Sunday May 5, 7:30 am  held at the 15th 16th ward building (125 W 600 N) for all ward and stake Priesthood leaders.

Youth Session:  Sunday May 5, 9:30 am held at the 15th 16th ward building (125 W 600 N) for youth ages 12-17

General Session:  Sunday, May 5 1:00 held at the Logan Tabernacle (50 North Main Street)  for all members

Good News!

Congratulations to the James' family. Their family will be sealed together this Saturday, April 27th at 1:30pm.

New Opportunities to Serve!

Last Sunday our much loved second counselor in the Relief Society Presidency, Lianne McCoy, was released and given a new calling for which she was very needed by the Lord.  DiAnne Casperson was sustained and set apart as our new second counselor and Lianne was sustained and set apart as the Ward Family History Specialist.  I can tell you firsthand that Lianne worked tirelessly in behalf of the presidency and the sisters in the ward. She loves all of you and prays for you often. Lianne will be very misssed.

 

I would like to welcome DiAnne to our presidency. She brings a solid testimony and love of Christ and the His gospel. I am looking forward to working with her.    

With much love, President Kim Nydegger.

Lesson Summary April 21, 2013

Lesson Summary:

Jan Wimmer gave the lesson from chapter # 8, "Search Me, O God, and Know My Heart."

In Dec. 15 1899 Pres. Lorenzo Snow spoke at a funeral of Pres. Franklin D. Richards. President Snow he ask the Lord of Israel to bless the Latter-day Saints,  that we may be prepared for the events of the near future, with our hearts right before the Lord. Illustrating the need to keep "Our hearts right before the Lord," Pres. Snow told of an experience he and Pres. Richards shared in the 1850s, when they were new Apostles.

"When President Brigham Young called upon the people to repent and reform, and renew their commitment to righteous living. He talked very strongly as to what ought to be done with some people--that their Priesthood ought to be taken from them, because of their failure to magnify it as they should have done. Well, it  touched Brother Franklin's heart, and it touched mine also; and we talked the matter over to ourselves. We concluded we would go to President Young and offer him our Priesthood. If he felt in the name of the Lord that we had not magnified our Priesthood, we would resign it. We went to him, saw him alone , and told him this. There were tears in his eyes when he said, " Brother Lorenzo, Brother Franklin, you have magnified your Priesthood satisfactorily to the Lord. God bless you."

         If we have established a proper character, we can confidently invite God to search our hearts.  There are those among us who are recognized as members of this Church who take a vast amount of pains to be favorably known by those around them, but whose real character, or the inwardness so to speak, of such people, is veiled or disguised.

"..... Now this prayer that I [refer] to is very significant:  'Search me, O God, and know my heart: try me, and know my thoughts; and see if there be any wicked way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting.' - [Psalm 139:23-24]. It was a prayer that David in the principal course of his live could conscientiously and with a degree of confidence offer up to the Lord. But there were times when David would feel the faltering sensation of weakness in offering up a prayer of this kind."

 "I have reason to believe that many of the Latter-day Saints, during a great portion of their lives, could approach the Lord in all confidence and make this same prayer. But if we, as a people, could live so as to be able at all times to bow before the Lord and offer up a prayer like this, what a delightful thing it would be."

. . . . We must be true men and true women; we must have faith largely developed, and we must be worthy of the companionship of the Holy Ghost to aid us in the work of rightesness all the day long, to enable us to sacrifice our own will to the will of the Father, to battle against our fallen nature, and to do right for the love of doing right, keeping our eye single to the honor and glory of God.

          It is important that we, as Latter-day Saints, should understand that the idea is not to do good because of the praise of men; but to do good because in doing good we develop godliness within us, and this being the case we shall become allied to godliness, which will in time become part and portion of our being.

         As we preserve our righteous character, we draw nearer to the Lord. Our character, as Latter-day Saints, should be preserved, at whatever cost or sacrifice. Character, approved of God is worth securing, even at the expense of a life-time of constant self-denial. While thus living we may look forward with full assurance that we shall be crowned with the sons and daughters of God, and possess the wealth and glory of a Celestial Kingdom.

We want to thank Jan wonderful lesson.