Lesson Summary July 7, 2013

DiAnne Casperson gave the lesson from May 2006 Ensign, "As a Child, Enduring through Perilous Times"  by Elder Henry B. Eyring

 

      Our natures must be changed to become as a child to gain the strength we must have tobe safe in the times of moral peril

                                       

 

The prophets of God have foreseen the times in which we live. The Apostle Paul wrote to Timothy, This know also, that in the last days perilous times shall come.

 

Anyone with eyes to see the signs of the times and ears to hear the words of prophets knows that the peril is great. The peril comes from the forces of wickedness. Those forces are increasing. And so it will become harder, not easier, to keep the covenants we must make to live the gospel of Jesus Christ. 

 

There is hope in the promise the Lord has given us - of a place of safety in the storms ahead.  A loving father told his sons of it this way as he tried to strengthen them against the storms of temptation:

 

And now, my sons, remember, remember that it is upon the rock of our Redeemer, who is Christ, the Son of God, that ye must build your foundation; that when the devil shall send forth his mighty winds, yea, his shafts in the whirlwind, yea, when all his hail and his mighty storm shall beat upon you, it shall have no power over you to drag you down to the gulf of misery and endless woe, because of the rock upon which ye are built, which is a sure foundation ¦ whereon if men build they cannot fall.

 

For the natural man is an enemy to God, and has been from the fall of Adam, and will be, forever and ever, unless he yields to the enticings of the Holy Spirit, and putteth off the natural man and becometh a saint through the atonement of Christ the Lord, and becometh as a child, submissive, meek, humble, patient, full of love, willing to submit to all things which the Lord seeth fit to inflict upon him, even as a child doth submit to his father.

 

And moreover, I say unto you, that there shall be no other name given nor any other way nor means whereby salvation can come unto the children of men, only in and through the name of Christ, the Lord Omnipotent.

 

What we need is faith in Him and to love Him. We must know that He lives and who He is. When we do, we will love Him.

 

King Benjamin suggested how to know Him in these words:

For how knoweth a man the master whom he has not served, and who is a stranger unto him, and is far from the thoughts and intents of his heart?

 

We come to love those we serve. If we choose to begin to serve the Master out of even a glimmer of faith, we will begin to know Him. We will come to know His purposes for the people we serve for Him. Even when they do not accept our offer to serve them, we will feel His appreciation if we persist.

 

I bear you my witness that the Savior lives and that He is the sure foundation. I know that by acting on our faith in Him we can be cleansed and changed to become pure and strong, as a little child. I bear you my testimony that the Holy Ghost can lead us to truth and away from sin.

 

 

Elder Henry B. Eyring

 

Thank you Diane for presenting this wonderful lesson               

 

Announcements for July & Aug 2013

Announcements:  07-07-2013

              

            The temple will be closed July 2nd - 16th for cleaning.

            July 18th - Hidden Treasures - Take-it Night.     6:30pm

            July 20th - ID Drive - have items on your porch in the morning

            July 24th â€“ Stake Breakfast, Willow Valley Bldg.  (200 West 800 North)

                                    followed by family pioneer parade

            July 25th - Ward Temple Day

            Aug. 16 & 17th - Ward Campout - Mt. Sterling Campgrounds

            Coed Softball each Wednesday @ Willow Valley building (100 West 800 North)

            Aug 22 – Ward Swim Party

 

Announcements July 2013

Announcements:

 

1.    We want to thank Gretchen Edwards for her hard work as our Night Relief Society Committee Chairman. We will miss you.    Good luck with your new calling as the Primary President. You will be great!!

 

      

2.    Welcome to our new Committee Chairman, Lael Gilbert.  We are looking forward to working with you.

 

3.     Thank you to all who attended our Relief Society Activity last Thursday evening.  We played games, visited, had ice cream and had a      

      very enjoyable evening. 

     

4.     This Sunday (30th) will be our combined R. S. and Priesthood lesson in the chapel. We will not hold our first meeting in the R. S. room.

 

5.     The temple will be closed July 2 - 13th for cleaning.

 

6.     July 18th - Hidden Treasures - Take-it Night.     Clean out your closets and unclutter your home. Everyone please bring good used items you     no longer want. Everything will be displayed for the sisters in the ward to look through and take as they desire.  This evening activity will be a lot     of fun! 

 

7.     This is the last week of the month.  Please complete you Visiting Teaching and call the member of the presidency for which you've been    assigned.  Thanks so much.

Lesson summary June 23, 2013

     lesson summary:

               

Loye gave her lesson from the May Ensign of 2013 talk by Elder Quentin L. Cook entitled "Personal Peace: The Reward of Righteousness."                                                              
                     Even with trials of life, because of the Saviors Atonement and His grace,  
                                   righteous living will be rewarded with personal peace.


    Recent experiences have caused me to reflect on the doctrine of peace and especially the role of Jesus Christ in helping each of us obtain lasting personal peace.

A recent event that has touched me deeply was when I spoke at the funeral for Emilie Parker, a precious six year old who lost her life along with 25 others, including 19 young children, in a tragic shooting in Newtown, Connecticut. I mourned with her family and recognized that a many had been deprived of peace, but I found strength and faith in  her parents, Robert and Alissa Parker. Events often occur that rob us of peace and heighten our sense of vulnerability.

 

        I have been impressed with the doctrinal difference between universal or world peace and personal peace.  At the birth of the Savior, a multitude of the heavenly host praised God and proclaimed, "Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, good will toward men."  Yet, as recited in the 10th chapter of Matthew, the Savior instructed the Twelve and acknowledged that His mission would not achieve universal peace in this mortal life. The Spirit of Christ which is given to every person who comes into the world, "shall not always strive with man."  therefore "peace shall be taken from the earth."  Prophets have declared that peace has indeed been taken from the earth. Lucifer has not yet been bound and he exercises power in this dominion.

 

          President Heber J. Grant described the Savior's peace this way: "His peace will ease our suffering, bind up our broken hearts, blot out our hated engender in our breasts a love of fellow men that will suffuse our souls with calm and happiness." In my meetings with Emilie Parker's parents, I saw that the Savior's peace has eased their suffering and is helping to bind up their broken hearts. It is notable that immediately after the shooting, Brother Parker expressed forgiveness to the perpetrateor.  As President Grant said, the Savior's peace can "blot out out hates."

 

           What are the sources of peace? Many search for peace in worldly ways, which never have and never will succeed. Peace is not found by attaining great wealth, power, or prominence. The answer is the Savior, who is the source and author of peace. He is the Prince of Peace."

 

            How do we stay close to the Savior? Humbling ourselves before God, praying always, repenting of sins, entering the waters of baptism with a broken heart and contrite spirit, and becoming true disciples of Jesus Christ.

 

            The Church is a refuge where followers of Christ attain peace. The temples are also a source of peaceful refuge from the world.

 

            The Savior promised His Apostles that they would be blessed with the "Comforter, which is the Holy Ghost" and then uttered these important words: "Peace I leave with you, my peace I give unto you: not as the world giveth, give I unto you." Then just before His Intercessory Prayer Christ said: "These things I have spoken unto you, that in me ye might have peace. In the world ye shall have tribulation: but be of good cheer; I have overcome the world.

 

Thank you Loye for your wonderful lesson .

Lesson Summary June 16, 2013

Tithing, a Law for Our Protection and Advancement                                                   

                         "The law of tithing is one of the most important ever revealed to man. . . 
                             Through obeying this law the blessings of prosperity and success 
                                                        will be given to the Saints,"
                               

        In May of 1899, President Lorenzo Snow felt prompted to visit the city of St. George and other settlements in southern Utah. He quickly began organizing a group of people, including several General Authorities, to take the long trip with him.  "When we left Salt Lake," he later said, "we did not know just what we were going to visit these southern settlements for."  But on May 17, 1899, soon after the travelers arrived in St. George, the Lord's will was "clearly manifested" to His prophet. 

 

        In a meeting held on May 18, President Snow declared, " The word of the Lord to you is not anything new; it is simply this: The time has now come for every Latter-Day Saint, who calculates to be prepared for the future and to hold his feet strong upon a proper foundation, to do the will of the Lord and to pay his tithing in full. That is the word of the Lord to you, and it will be the word of the Lord to every settlement throughout the land of Zion. There is no man or woman that now hears what I am saying who will feel satisfied if he or she fails to pay a full tithing."

 

        In his previous 50 years as an Apostle, President Snow had rarely mentioned the law of tithing in his sermons. That changed in St. George, Utah, because of the revelation he received. "I never had a more perfect revelation, than  [the revelation] I received on this subject of tithing."

 

        President Snow had repeatedly assured the Saints that they would be blessed individually, both temporally and spiritually, as they obeyed the law of tithing. That promise was partially fulfilled in August 1899, when the people of St. George enjoyed temporary relief from their drought; their faith was rewarded with 2.93 inches of rain, more than they had received in the previous 13 months combined. President Snow had also promised that obedience to the law of tithing would bring blessings to the Church as a whole. He felt certain that the tithes of the faithful would enable the church to break free from its indebtedness.  

 

        The law of tithing is one of the most important ever revealed to man . . .  Through obeying this law the blessings of prosperity and success will be given unto the Saints. If we will keep that law . . . the land will be sanctified, and we shall be counted worthy to receive the blessings of the Lord and to be sustained and supported in our financial affairs and in everything we do, temporal as well as spiritually. The temporal salvation of this Church depends upon obedience to this law.

 

         " .... I require it at your hands, not only to obey it, but to teach it to the children of the Latter-day Saints, and to impress it upon the tablets of their memories, so that when they shall grow into years of discretion, it may be said they were taught it, and that they obeyed it from their youth up."

 

 

           Thank you, Jan, for all the work you put into this lesson; it was wonderfully taught and we could fell the Spirit present.