As promised here is the link for the Emma Smith film on You Tube for those who missed the last part of the film:
What a wonderful and inspiration Emma was as the 1st President of this wonderful organization.
Friday, 21 March 2014
The Emma Smith Story...
It was so wonderful to have so many of you Sisters join us on Wednesday evening as we celebrated the 172nd birthday of Relief Society.
As promised here is the link for the Emma Smith film on You Tube for those who missed the last part of the film:
What a wonderful and inspiration Emma was as the 1st President of this wonderful organization.
As promised here is the link for the Emma Smith film on You Tube for those who missed the last part of the film:
What a wonderful and inspiration Emma was as the 1st President of this wonderful organization.
Sunday, 16 March 2014
Announcements & Lesson - 16th March 2014
Announcements:
This Wednesday is our Enrichment meeting where we will be celebrating the RS Birthday. Please bring something comfortable to sit on if you wish (cushion / beanbag), and a dessert. It will be a fun and restful evening where we can enjoy one another's company. It would be most helpful if you could arrive on time to start at 7.30pm.
We have a lovely new sister in our RS - Anna Bella (Christina Torres' mum) has moved into Ipswich and we are excited to get to know her better.
A reminder that on Sat 5th April the first General Women's meeting will be shown - invited are all RS Sisters, all YW and all Primary girls aged 8+. The stake will be providing light refreshments.
The Lesson next Sunday will be taken from Elder Richard G Scott's talk from October 2013 General Conference - Personal Strength through the Atonement.
Lesson:
Yvonne gave the lesson today from Chapter 6 of the Joseph Fielding Smith manual: The Significance of the Sacrament.
President Smith stated 'In my judgement the sacrament meeting is the most sacred, the most holy, of all meetings of the Church' and went on to confirm that 'the partaking of these emblems (the bread and water) constitutes one of the most holy and sacred ordinances in the Church.'
So how big a part does the sacrament play in our lives? Do we prepare for it? Do we ensure our families are at church promptly so we can take it each week? Does it make a difference to how we live our lives?
Pres Smith was very direct in his comments: 'The person who absents himself from a sacrament meeting week after week...is not loyal to the truth. He does not love it. If he did...he would want to do that to show love for the truth and his loyal service to the Son of God.'
The challenge is really to look at how we view it in our own lives and make sure we put it as a high priority - the very purpose we attend church on a Sunday.
We discussed the necessity to think of the Saviour during the sacrament time, and even use those moments to talk with our Father in Heaven. Alison shared that an Ensign article spoke of how when we have young children the sacrament ends up being a time of just trying to keep the children quiet - but suggested that in this case a good solution would be to try and find an alternative time in the week when we can sit and commune with the Lord and reflect on those covenants.
Other points expressed were how important it is to be at church early enough to sit and listen to the prelude music and feel the calmness the Spirit brings, and to ensure that we are preparing for the sacrament before Sunday - but it becomes part of what we reflect on during the week.
Pres Smith ended by saying the following - something to have a reflect on this coming week:
"I want to ask you a few questions, and I speak of course to all the members of the Church. Do you think a man who comes into the sacrament service in the spirit of prayer, humility and worship and who partakes of these emblems representing the body and blood of Jesus Christ, will knowingly break the commandments of the Lord? If a man fully realizes what it means when he partakes of the sacrament, that he covenants to take upon him the name of Jesus Christ and to always remember him and keep his commandments, and this vow is renewed week by week - do you think such a man will fail to pay his tithing? Do you think such a man will break the Sabbath day or disregard the Word of Wisdom? Do you think he will fail to be prayerful and that he will not attend his quorum duties and other duties in the church? It seems to me that such a thing as a violation of these sacred principles and duties is impossible when a man knows what it means to make such vows week by week unto the Lord and before the saints."
This Wednesday is our Enrichment meeting where we will be celebrating the RS Birthday. Please bring something comfortable to sit on if you wish (cushion / beanbag), and a dessert. It will be a fun and restful evening where we can enjoy one another's company. It would be most helpful if you could arrive on time to start at 7.30pm.
We have a lovely new sister in our RS - Anna Bella (Christina Torres' mum) has moved into Ipswich and we are excited to get to know her better.
A reminder that on Sat 5th April the first General Women's meeting will be shown - invited are all RS Sisters, all YW and all Primary girls aged 8+. The stake will be providing light refreshments.
The Lesson next Sunday will be taken from Elder Richard G Scott's talk from October 2013 General Conference - Personal Strength through the Atonement.
Lesson:
Yvonne gave the lesson today from Chapter 6 of the Joseph Fielding Smith manual: The Significance of the Sacrament.
President Smith stated 'In my judgement the sacrament meeting is the most sacred, the most holy, of all meetings of the Church' and went on to confirm that 'the partaking of these emblems (the bread and water) constitutes one of the most holy and sacred ordinances in the Church.'
So how big a part does the sacrament play in our lives? Do we prepare for it? Do we ensure our families are at church promptly so we can take it each week? Does it make a difference to how we live our lives?
Pres Smith was very direct in his comments: 'The person who absents himself from a sacrament meeting week after week...is not loyal to the truth. He does not love it. If he did...he would want to do that to show love for the truth and his loyal service to the Son of God.'
The challenge is really to look at how we view it in our own lives and make sure we put it as a high priority - the very purpose we attend church on a Sunday.
We discussed the necessity to think of the Saviour during the sacrament time, and even use those moments to talk with our Father in Heaven. Alison shared that an Ensign article spoke of how when we have young children the sacrament ends up being a time of just trying to keep the children quiet - but suggested that in this case a good solution would be to try and find an alternative time in the week when we can sit and commune with the Lord and reflect on those covenants.
Other points expressed were how important it is to be at church early enough to sit and listen to the prelude music and feel the calmness the Spirit brings, and to ensure that we are preparing for the sacrament before Sunday - but it becomes part of what we reflect on during the week.
Pres Smith ended by saying the following - something to have a reflect on this coming week:
"I want to ask you a few questions, and I speak of course to all the members of the Church. Do you think a man who comes into the sacrament service in the spirit of prayer, humility and worship and who partakes of these emblems representing the body and blood of Jesus Christ, will knowingly break the commandments of the Lord? If a man fully realizes what it means when he partakes of the sacrament, that he covenants to take upon him the name of Jesus Christ and to always remember him and keep his commandments, and this vow is renewed week by week - do you think such a man will fail to pay his tithing? Do you think such a man will break the Sabbath day or disregard the Word of Wisdom? Do you think he will fail to be prayerful and that he will not attend his quorum duties and other duties in the church? It seems to me that such a thing as a violation of these sacred principles and duties is impossible when a man knows what it means to make such vows week by week unto the Lord and before the saints."
Sunday, 2 March 2014
Annoucements & Lesson - 2nd March 2014
Announcements:
There is the baptism of Emma Dias on Saturday at 4pm. All are invited to come and make this a very special day for Emma. The Primary children have been asked to sing as part of the service so if you have children in primary, please try and bring them along.
If you have not handed in your VT figures / report for February can you please pass these to Sara ASAP.
March is the RS Birthday and we will be celebrating this at a special RS enrichment meeting on March 19th at 7.30pm. It will be a fun and informal evening - sisters are asked to please bring floor cushions / beanbags if they wish so they can be more comfortable. More details will be given next Sunday.
As you may know the Church has announced that there will no longer be an annual General RS Meeting in October. Instead at each General Conference there will be a General Women's Meeting which will be open to all members of RS, YW and Primary girls aged 8+. It was a wonderful exciting change and the first meeting will be shown in the Ipswich chapel at 3pm on 5th April. Light refreshments will be served.
Lesson:
The presidency message this month was given by Sara McCullum.
She told of an experiment that was made on 3 groups of people - the first was asked at the end of each week to write down 5 things that they were grateful for. The second to write 5 things which had been stressful, the third to write 5 things which had happened and were neither positive or stressful. At the end of 10 weeks the results were dramatic!
The first group who had recorded their gratitude were found to be 25% happier than they were previously, more optimistic, had more energy and enthusiasm, slept better and felt more refreshed in the morning, had closer relationships, were healthier and sick less often, were less lonely, dealt better with stress, made better progress on goals, had more focus and were more likely to serve other people.
We don't need studies to tell us the need to be grateful as the Lord has continually commanded us in scripture to be grateful for all that we have (Psalms 92:1, D&C 46:32, D&C 98:1). Not because He needs our gratitude but for the amazing blessings it opens up into our own lives...including having a better attitude, realizing the wonderful things we have been blessed with but also as Pres Monson said: 'Sincerely giving thanks not only helps is recognize our blessings but it also unlocks the doors of heaven and helps us feel God's love.'
We looked at 5 ways in which we can begin to become more grateful:
1. Keep a Gratitude Journal - this is a favourite of President Henry B Eyring who followed this practise as each night he would reflect on the question 'Have I seen the hand of God reaching out to touch me or my family today? Several sisters shared how they have used this practice and what a blessing it has as they have sit back and read past entries of the blessings they have enjoyed.
2. Take time to write thank you notes and letters of appreciation - Sara shared a true story of a man called John Kralik who in December 2007 hit rock bottom. He owned a law practice which failed and he could not afford to pay his employees. The lease for his business ran out and he could not afford a new one. His divorce was finalised and a further relationship broke up. He, a man who was used to good things, found himself alone in a tiny rented flat.
On New Years Day 2008 he went for a walk, knowing something had to change in his life. Whilst walking he tells of hearing a small voice whispering that he needed to show more gratitude - so there and then he committed to writing 365 thank you notes. The results were dramatic and he later wrote a book of his experiences. He shared:
"By showing others how their lives had meaning in mine, I found them reflecting back that my life also had meaning in theirs. I gained an overall sense of peace, a belief that my life was and had been a good one. The change did not happen overnight, but it happened...
"Almost without intending to do so I started to change my life in ways that would make me more worthy of receiving thank you notes myself.
"So many of my readers have inspired me. A woman living in a nursing home because a stroke had paralyzed her 'on my right side' told me that she praises the 'Lord I was born left handed and I've taken it upon myself to write birthday and thank you cards to all the staff'. A woman whose husband had been paralyzed for 20 years in a car accident wrote of how she had been 'thankful that he was not killed.' Her children had 'grown into very empathetic people'.
"My readers told me stories of how important people were thanked before it was too late. A woman in Omaha thanked a priest who changed her life 22 years ago and her letter arrived to comfort him a few days before he died. When she went back to thank a teacher, 'she saw us and the flowers, put her head on the desk and cried she was so happy. She said she had been a teacher for 23 years and no one had ever thanked her.'
3. Add more thank you's into your vocabulary
4. Live in the present moment and recognise the tender mercies of the Lord - We discussed the talk given by Elder Bednar on these tender mercies (Click here to read the talk). We discussed how these are much less visible in our lives but are those special moments when we can see the Lord's hand in our lives and know He is giving us the strength, or help, or blessing we need at that moment and that they happen on a daily basis.
5. Prayer - the most important one of all. Whilst it is vital we recognise our blessings and record these, while it is lovely to write notes and thank others - the most essential thing of all is to thank the Lord, the giver of all good gifts for all He does in our lives and for all those tender mercies that help us through mortal life.
Sara's challenge to all sisters was to do something to become more grateful. To choose at least one of these ways and enable the heavens to open and for each of us to feel the Lord's love.
There is the baptism of Emma Dias on Saturday at 4pm. All are invited to come and make this a very special day for Emma. The Primary children have been asked to sing as part of the service so if you have children in primary, please try and bring them along.
If you have not handed in your VT figures / report for February can you please pass these to Sara ASAP.
March is the RS Birthday and we will be celebrating this at a special RS enrichment meeting on March 19th at 7.30pm. It will be a fun and informal evening - sisters are asked to please bring floor cushions / beanbags if they wish so they can be more comfortable. More details will be given next Sunday.
As you may know the Church has announced that there will no longer be an annual General RS Meeting in October. Instead at each General Conference there will be a General Women's Meeting which will be open to all members of RS, YW and Primary girls aged 8+. It was a wonderful exciting change and the first meeting will be shown in the Ipswich chapel at 3pm on 5th April. Light refreshments will be served.
Lesson:
The presidency message this month was given by Sara McCullum.
She told of an experiment that was made on 3 groups of people - the first was asked at the end of each week to write down 5 things that they were grateful for. The second to write 5 things which had been stressful, the third to write 5 things which had happened and were neither positive or stressful. At the end of 10 weeks the results were dramatic!
The first group who had recorded their gratitude were found to be 25% happier than they were previously, more optimistic, had more energy and enthusiasm, slept better and felt more refreshed in the morning, had closer relationships, were healthier and sick less often, were less lonely, dealt better with stress, made better progress on goals, had more focus and were more likely to serve other people.
We don't need studies to tell us the need to be grateful as the Lord has continually commanded us in scripture to be grateful for all that we have (Psalms 92:1, D&C 46:32, D&C 98:1). Not because He needs our gratitude but for the amazing blessings it opens up into our own lives...including having a better attitude, realizing the wonderful things we have been blessed with but also as Pres Monson said: 'Sincerely giving thanks not only helps is recognize our blessings but it also unlocks the doors of heaven and helps us feel God's love.'
We looked at 5 ways in which we can begin to become more grateful:
1. Keep a Gratitude Journal - this is a favourite of President Henry B Eyring who followed this practise as each night he would reflect on the question 'Have I seen the hand of God reaching out to touch me or my family today? Several sisters shared how they have used this practice and what a blessing it has as they have sit back and read past entries of the blessings they have enjoyed.
2. Take time to write thank you notes and letters of appreciation - Sara shared a true story of a man called John Kralik who in December 2007 hit rock bottom. He owned a law practice which failed and he could not afford to pay his employees. The lease for his business ran out and he could not afford a new one. His divorce was finalised and a further relationship broke up. He, a man who was used to good things, found himself alone in a tiny rented flat.
On New Years Day 2008 he went for a walk, knowing something had to change in his life. Whilst walking he tells of hearing a small voice whispering that he needed to show more gratitude - so there and then he committed to writing 365 thank you notes. The results were dramatic and he later wrote a book of his experiences. He shared:
"By showing others how their lives had meaning in mine, I found them reflecting back that my life also had meaning in theirs. I gained an overall sense of peace, a belief that my life was and had been a good one. The change did not happen overnight, but it happened...
"Almost without intending to do so I started to change my life in ways that would make me more worthy of receiving thank you notes myself.
"So many of my readers have inspired me. A woman living in a nursing home because a stroke had paralyzed her 'on my right side' told me that she praises the 'Lord I was born left handed and I've taken it upon myself to write birthday and thank you cards to all the staff'. A woman whose husband had been paralyzed for 20 years in a car accident wrote of how she had been 'thankful that he was not killed.' Her children had 'grown into very empathetic people'.
"My readers told me stories of how important people were thanked before it was too late. A woman in Omaha thanked a priest who changed her life 22 years ago and her letter arrived to comfort him a few days before he died. When she went back to thank a teacher, 'she saw us and the flowers, put her head on the desk and cried she was so happy. She said she had been a teacher for 23 years and no one had ever thanked her.'
3. Add more thank you's into your vocabulary
4. Live in the present moment and recognise the tender mercies of the Lord - We discussed the talk given by Elder Bednar on these tender mercies (Click here to read the talk). We discussed how these are much less visible in our lives but are those special moments when we can see the Lord's hand in our lives and know He is giving us the strength, or help, or blessing we need at that moment and that they happen on a daily basis.
5. Prayer - the most important one of all. Whilst it is vital we recognise our blessings and record these, while it is lovely to write notes and thank others - the most essential thing of all is to thank the Lord, the giver of all good gifts for all He does in our lives and for all those tender mercies that help us through mortal life.
Sara's challenge to all sisters was to do something to become more grateful. To choose at least one of these ways and enable the heavens to open and for each of us to feel the Lord's love.
Sunday, 23 February 2014
Announcements and Lesson - 23 February 2014
Announcements:
Peter Talbot-Ashby's funeral will be this Thursday. The service will be at the Ipswich chapel at 10.30am, followed by the burial at 12.00pm in Hadleigh, and then food will be served at the Hintlesham and Chattisham Community Centre from 12.45pm. The ward have been invited to attend all three parts of the funeral. A reminder that it will be family flowers only. Anyone who wishes to make a donation can pass this to the funeral directors for RNLI or St Elizabeths Hospice.
If any sisters would like to help with the food for the funeral and hasn't yet been asked, please speak to Kim Spencer who can confirm what else is needed. - Thank you.
A big thank you to all those who are assisting with taking Trish Read home from the hospital each day. Norman is beginning to do a little better and they very much appreciate all the help they are receiving.
Please note we are now into the last week of February - please make every effort to visit your VT Sisters and report back to the presidency how these sisters are.
Lesson:
What a wonderful Sunday we had for our Ward Conference and what a treat to hear from our Stake Leaders.
President Simon Fagg, our Stake President, said as he had prayed about the upcoming ward conferences he knew that he needed to be in the RS meetings with the sisters and wanted to share how much he loves the sisters and all they do to aid in building the kingdom and families of the stake.
Sister Shirley Allen (2nd counsellor in the Stake RS Presidency) then taught us from Elder Ballard's talk in Octobers General Conference - Put your trust in the Lord.
We talked about the joy of being a member of the Lord's church and how now more than ever there is a need for each of us to share this wonderful message with those around us. President Spencer W Kimball said "Perhaps the greatest reason for missionary work is to give the world its chance to hear and accept the gospel" - just as each of us has been able to do.
There are so many ways to share the gospel now - especially with the use of the internet and social media but still there remains 2 main barriers which tend to stand in our way. We shared what we thought they might be and found we agreed with Elder Ballard:
1. The first one is fear. Many members do not even pray for opportunities to share the gospel, fearing they might receive divine promptings to do something they think they are not capable of doing.
2. The second reason is misunderstanding of what missionary work is.
However we shared thoughts about how these can be overcome, including our faith that the Lord will help us know what to say in the moment and also the idea of simply putting down breadcrumbs as we talk and allow those around us to pick them up and know the Lord will help the conversation to happen.
Elder Ballard assures us "It is impossible for us to fail when we do our best when we are on the Lord's errand."
If you would like to listen to Elder Ballard's talk in full just click HERE
Peter Talbot-Ashby's funeral will be this Thursday. The service will be at the Ipswich chapel at 10.30am, followed by the burial at 12.00pm in Hadleigh, and then food will be served at the Hintlesham and Chattisham Community Centre from 12.45pm. The ward have been invited to attend all three parts of the funeral. A reminder that it will be family flowers only. Anyone who wishes to make a donation can pass this to the funeral directors for RNLI or St Elizabeths Hospice.
If any sisters would like to help with the food for the funeral and hasn't yet been asked, please speak to Kim Spencer who can confirm what else is needed. - Thank you.
A big thank you to all those who are assisting with taking Trish Read home from the hospital each day. Norman is beginning to do a little better and they very much appreciate all the help they are receiving.
Please note we are now into the last week of February - please make every effort to visit your VT Sisters and report back to the presidency how these sisters are.
Lesson:
What a wonderful Sunday we had for our Ward Conference and what a treat to hear from our Stake Leaders.
President Simon Fagg, our Stake President, said as he had prayed about the upcoming ward conferences he knew that he needed to be in the RS meetings with the sisters and wanted to share how much he loves the sisters and all they do to aid in building the kingdom and families of the stake.
Sister Shirley Allen (2nd counsellor in the Stake RS Presidency) then taught us from Elder Ballard's talk in Octobers General Conference - Put your trust in the Lord.
We talked about the joy of being a member of the Lord's church and how now more than ever there is a need for each of us to share this wonderful message with those around us. President Spencer W Kimball said "Perhaps the greatest reason for missionary work is to give the world its chance to hear and accept the gospel" - just as each of us has been able to do.
There are so many ways to share the gospel now - especially with the use of the internet and social media but still there remains 2 main barriers which tend to stand in our way. We shared what we thought they might be and found we agreed with Elder Ballard:
1. The first one is fear. Many members do not even pray for opportunities to share the gospel, fearing they might receive divine promptings to do something they think they are not capable of doing.
2. The second reason is misunderstanding of what missionary work is.
However we shared thoughts about how these can be overcome, including our faith that the Lord will help us know what to say in the moment and also the idea of simply putting down breadcrumbs as we talk and allow those around us to pick them up and know the Lord will help the conversation to happen.
Elder Ballard assures us "It is impossible for us to fail when we do our best when we are on the Lord's errand."
If you would like to listen to Elder Ballard's talk in full just click HERE
Sunday, 16 February 2014
Announcements and Lesson - 16th February 2014
Announcements:
We are sad to announce the passing of Brother Peter Talbot-Ashby this week after a long battle with cancer. We are awaiting confirmation of the date of the funeral but will let you know as soon as possible. We will be helping with food for the funeral so some sisters may be contacted by Kim Spencer who will be co-ordinating this. Family have requested family flowers only, with donations to be made to RNLI or St Elizabeth's Hospice where they hope to purchase a 5 year leaf tribute to Peter on the memorial tree.
Next Sunday we have our Ward Conference which will be followed by a Munch and Mingle. Sister Paula Pereira is co-ordinating this and has requested each family bring a meal (hot) and dessert to share. Any problems please see Paula.
This week is our Stake Temple Week and all are encouraged to attend where possible.
We have a number of sisters who are unwell and having a difficult time - please take time to remember them in your prayers and maybe send a card.
We are now halfway through the month - please ensure you are arranging your VT visits and serving your sisters and showing you care.
Lesson:
Sister Margaret Benmore taught our lesson today from Chapter 4 of Pres Joseph Fielding Smiths teachings on Strengthening and Preserving the Family - a topic close to many of our hearts.
What a wonderful example Joseph Fielding Smith was of this - listen to how this wife Ethel described him:
We are sad to announce the passing of Brother Peter Talbot-Ashby this week after a long battle with cancer. We are awaiting confirmation of the date of the funeral but will let you know as soon as possible. We will be helping with food for the funeral so some sisters may be contacted by Kim Spencer who will be co-ordinating this. Family have requested family flowers only, with donations to be made to RNLI or St Elizabeth's Hospice where they hope to purchase a 5 year leaf tribute to Peter on the memorial tree.
Next Sunday we have our Ward Conference which will be followed by a Munch and Mingle. Sister Paula Pereira is co-ordinating this and has requested each family bring a meal (hot) and dessert to share. Any problems please see Paula.
This week is our Stake Temple Week and all are encouraged to attend where possible.
We have a number of sisters who are unwell and having a difficult time - please take time to remember them in your prayers and maybe send a card.
We are now halfway through the month - please ensure you are arranging your VT visits and serving your sisters and showing you care.
Lesson:
Sister Margaret Benmore taught our lesson today from Chapter 4 of Pres Joseph Fielding Smiths teachings on Strengthening and Preserving the Family - a topic close to many of our hearts.
What a wonderful example Joseph Fielding Smith was of this - listen to how this wife Ethel described him:
"You ask me to tell of the man I know. I have often thought when he is gone people will say, he is a very good man, sincere, orthodox etc. They will speak of him as the public knows him, but the man they have in mind is very different from the man I know. The man I know is a kind, loving husband and father whose greatest ambition in life is to make his family happy, entirely forgetful of self in his efforts to do this. He is the man that lulls to sleep the fretful child, who tells bedtime stories to the little ones, who is never too tired or too busy to sit up late at night or to get up early in the morning to help the older children solve perplexing school problems. When illness comes the man I know watches tenderly over the afflicted one and waits upon him. It is their father for whom they cry, feeling his presence a panacea for their ills. It is his hands that bind up the wounds, his arms that give courage to the sufferer, his voice that remonstrates with them gently when they err, until it becomes their happiness to do the thing that will make him happy...The man I know is unselfish, uncomplaining, considerate, thoughtful, sympathetic, doing everything within his power to make life a supreme joy for his loved ones. That is the man I know."
We discussed how with the family being THE most important unit it needs our very best efforts just as President Smith ensured was the case in his family.
There are so many ways in which the world is attacking that family unit and no longer will a half hearted effort keep us safe. We discussed what some of these dangers are - including peer pressure, too much time spent on careers outside the home (both for mother and father), pornography, not valuing the law of chastity, media and the internet, immoral music, the acceptance of gay marriage and societal views of marriage as important to name just a few. And then spent much of the lesson discussing the steps we can take to protect our families from such attacks.
Some ideas suggested were to be cautious on the influences allowed in the home, on voicing our concerns when we don't agree with programmes used in schools or on the TV, having open communication with our children so they can speak to us about concerns. Also mentioned was that we live in this world and it will continue to get worse so one of the best things we can do to ensure safety in the family is to help our children know the standards and gain testimonies of them for themselves - help them have spiritual experiences and grow in faith so they will WANT to live the Lord's way.
Margaret left us to ponder over this coming week some questions posed by President Smith:
Do you spend as much time making your family and home successful as you do in pursuing social and professional success?
Are you devoting your best creative energy to the most important unit in society - the family?
Or is your relationship with your family merely a routine, unrewarding part of life?
Parent and child must be willing to put family responsibilities first in order to achieve family exaltation....
Sisters are we willing?
Sunday, 9 February 2014
Annoucements and Lesson - 9 February 2014
Announcements:
We have our Ward Conference on 23rd February which will be followed by a Munch and Mingle. More details will follow shortly.
Our first Stake Temple Week for 2014 is 18th - 22nd February. If you wish for accommodation to be booked for you by the stake an email was sent out by Kurt Green to sisters last night. This needs to be completed and returned to Kurt TODAY. Otherwise you may of course book accommodation directly with the temple.
During Temple Week on 20th February our youth will be doing baptisms at the temple. They are looking for ward members to provide enough names for the youth to do baptisms for. If you can assist please see the email sent to sisters today from Sara which will give more information. Kurt Green is co-ordinating this and will need all the papers by next Sunday.
Missionary Moment - we will be having a minute or two each Sunday in RS where a sister can share a missionary experience she has had in the preceding week. Today Gloria Watson shared how simply from talking about the church with her friend Maggie while swimming she asked to come to church and how much she felt the spirit and wishes to come again. If you have an experience you would like to share please email a member of the presidency.
Lesson:
Today Graca taught our lesson on chapter 3 of The Teachings of Joseph Fielding Smith which was a review of the plan of salvation.
We talked about how wonderful this plan truly is, what it might have felt like to have lived with our Heavenly Father in the pre-existence and to hear His plan presented to us. About how due to the fall of Adam we became so very dependant on a Saviour, Jesus Christ to make it possible for us to return back home.
We specifically talked about the role of Christ - and how the atonement took place:
"The driving of the nails into his hands and into the Saviour's feet was the least part of his suffering. We get into the habit, I think, of feeling or thinking that his great suffering was being nailed to the cross and left to hang there. Well, that was a period in the world's history when thousands of men suffered that way. So his suffering, so far as that is concerned, was not any more than the suffering of other men who have been so crucified. What then was his great suffering? I wish we could impress this fact upon the minds of every member of this church. His great suffering occurred before he ever went to the cross. It was in the Garden of Gethsemane, so the scriptures tell us, that blood oozed from every pore of his body and in the extreme agony of his soul, he cried to his father. it was not the nails driven into his hands and feet. Now do not ask me how that was done because I do not know. Nobody knows. All we know is that in some way he took upon himself that extreme penalty. He took upon him our transgressions, and paid a price, a price of torment.
" Think of the Saviour carrying the united burden of every individual - torment - in some way which I say I cannot understand: I just accept."
The same goes for each of us - we cannot understand but we CAN accept. We can live by the first principles and ordinances of the gospel, faith in Jesus Christ, repentance as often as needed, baptism and receiving the Holy Ghost and then always enduring so that one day we can be received into the celestial kingdom - to once again live with our Father in Heaven.
As Elder Smith said:
"I am sure that we all love the Lord. I know that He lives and I look forward to that day when I shall see His face and I hope to hear his voice say unto me, Come ye blessed of my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world.
"And I pray that this may be the happy lot of all of us, in our own due time."
We have our Ward Conference on 23rd February which will be followed by a Munch and Mingle. More details will follow shortly.
Our first Stake Temple Week for 2014 is 18th - 22nd February. If you wish for accommodation to be booked for you by the stake an email was sent out by Kurt Green to sisters last night. This needs to be completed and returned to Kurt TODAY. Otherwise you may of course book accommodation directly with the temple.
During Temple Week on 20th February our youth will be doing baptisms at the temple. They are looking for ward members to provide enough names for the youth to do baptisms for. If you can assist please see the email sent to sisters today from Sara which will give more information. Kurt Green is co-ordinating this and will need all the papers by next Sunday.
Missionary Moment - we will be having a minute or two each Sunday in RS where a sister can share a missionary experience she has had in the preceding week. Today Gloria Watson shared how simply from talking about the church with her friend Maggie while swimming she asked to come to church and how much she felt the spirit and wishes to come again. If you have an experience you would like to share please email a member of the presidency.
Lesson:
Today Graca taught our lesson on chapter 3 of The Teachings of Joseph Fielding Smith which was a review of the plan of salvation.
We talked about how wonderful this plan truly is, what it might have felt like to have lived with our Heavenly Father in the pre-existence and to hear His plan presented to us. About how due to the fall of Adam we became so very dependant on a Saviour, Jesus Christ to make it possible for us to return back home.
We specifically talked about the role of Christ - and how the atonement took place:
"The driving of the nails into his hands and into the Saviour's feet was the least part of his suffering. We get into the habit, I think, of feeling or thinking that his great suffering was being nailed to the cross and left to hang there. Well, that was a period in the world's history when thousands of men suffered that way. So his suffering, so far as that is concerned, was not any more than the suffering of other men who have been so crucified. What then was his great suffering? I wish we could impress this fact upon the minds of every member of this church. His great suffering occurred before he ever went to the cross. It was in the Garden of Gethsemane, so the scriptures tell us, that blood oozed from every pore of his body and in the extreme agony of his soul, he cried to his father. it was not the nails driven into his hands and feet. Now do not ask me how that was done because I do not know. Nobody knows. All we know is that in some way he took upon himself that extreme penalty. He took upon him our transgressions, and paid a price, a price of torment.
" Think of the Saviour carrying the united burden of every individual - torment - in some way which I say I cannot understand: I just accept."
The same goes for each of us - we cannot understand but we CAN accept. We can live by the first principles and ordinances of the gospel, faith in Jesus Christ, repentance as often as needed, baptism and receiving the Holy Ghost and then always enduring so that one day we can be received into the celestial kingdom - to once again live with our Father in Heaven.
As Elder Smith said:
"I am sure that we all love the Lord. I know that He lives and I look forward to that day when I shall see His face and I hope to hear his voice say unto me, Come ye blessed of my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world.
"And I pray that this may be the happy lot of all of us, in our own due time."
Tuesday, 4 February 2014
A thought for you....
After our lesson on Sunday a Sister sent me this fantastic quote:
What have You done today for the sisters you visit teach?
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