Light The World With Service~

On December 1st, The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is having a worldwide Day of Service; entitled: #LighttheWorld.  We are inviting everyone throughout the world to do an acts of service from December 1st through December 25th. Join us in this initiative. The service can be just a simple thing or perhaps a few bigger acts of pure love for someone. I will be posting inspiring videos, fun moments and thoughts about this on my blog.
 As a full time missionaries for our church, we are very excited about this worldwide event. We have over 70,000 missionaries, plus a large number of senior missionaries throughout the world that will be participating in this occasion.. We feel that we will have at least 100,000 acts of service on December 1st, which is the kick off day.  As others join us through the 25 days, these acts of service will be multiplied many times. 

Please join us this Christmas season in worshiping the birth of our Divine Savior by doing acts of  love and service for Him. His mission was to come to earth and provide for us many examples of His pure love through the service He gave and then the ultimate gift of love through  His Atonement. 
I love my Savior and want to always  follow Him. That is why we are serving a full time mission because of our belief in the Atonement of Jesus Christ. You can find out what we believe here. 
Here is a  link for 25 days of service ideas.
#Lighttheworld

A Thankful Heart~

Our Savior is the perfect example. His charity towards us and all men teaches us

 how to act towards others: 

"As I have loved you, love one another." His infinite love was expressed through His Atonement. Our gratitude for Him can be expressed through serving others -

 because we love them, and because we love Him.

My heart is full of gratitude for Him and for so many gifts and blessings. 
I have been blessed deeply with a wonderful caring eternal companion and a very lovely family. We have faced many difficulties through our lives but have recognized our blessings from a loving Heavenly Father and our Savior Jesus Christ. 
I grateful for my extended family and for countless friends through the years that have blessed my life in a multitude of ways. 
I am grateful for the opportunity that I have had through the years to care for and serve others as former nurse and within many callings and assignments in our church and community. 
I know what a privilege I have had to be a daughter,wife, mother, grandmother, great grandmother, Aunt, Cousin and friend. 
I am presently facing a health challenge that I am having tests for. I have had priesthood blessings and feel at peace. 
I do have a very thankful heart! 
I thought I would share with you today the marvelous words that were spoken in the recent broadcast of "Music and The Spoken Word" with the Mormon Tabernacle Choir. Enjoy!

Mormon Tabernacle Choir and Orchestra at Temple Square perform Handel's Messiah at Salt Lake Tabernacle, March 24, 2016.

Editor's note: “The Spoken Word” is shared by Lloyd Newell each Sunday during the weekly Mormon Tabernacle Choir broadcast. This will be given Nov. 20, 2016.

Long before the New England colonists held their now-legendary autumn feast nearly 400 years ago, and well before Thanksgiving was ever a holiday, giving thanks has been essential to the human soul.

And that’s true not only in times of plenty. On good days and bad, through abundance and scarcity, we make life sweeter when we count our blessings.

Perhaps that is why gratitude is said to be “not only the greatest of all virtues, but the parent of all … virtues” (see Marcus Tullius Cicero, in Abram N. Coleman, ed., "Proverbial Wisdom: Proverbs, Maxims and Ethical Sentences," published in 1903). We would all do well to pause and ponder how blessed we are. It doesn’t require a holiday to live in thanksgiving daily.

Yet on days when we feel weighed down with burdens, it can be difficult to see the beautiful and hear the positive. But that doesn’t mean they are not there!

The story is told of a young girl and her grandmother taking a walk together. “The song of the birds was glorious to the little girl, and she pointed out every sound to her grandmother. ‘Do you hear that?’ the little girl asked again and again. But her grandmother was hard of hearing and could not make out the sounds. Finally, the grandmother knelt down and said, ‘I’m sorry, dear. Grandma doesn’t hear so well.’ Exasperated, the little girl took her grandmother’s face in her hands, looked intently into her eyes, and said, ‘Grandma, listen harder!’” (see “Fourth Floor, Last Door,” by President Dieter F. Uchtdorf, Ensign, November 2016).

While this advice may not help a grandmother hear the birds chirping, it’s excellent advice for us when life’s worries make us deaf to its beauties. All around us are blessings, large and small. Listen, and you will hear the glorious sounds around you. Look, and you will see the beauty around you. Cultivate the habit of finding the good, and give thanks continually.

Henry Ward Beecher wrote, “The unthankful heart … discovers no mercies; but let the thankful heart sweep through the day and … it will find, in every hour, some heavenly blessings!” (see "Connecticut Families of the Revolution: American Forebears from Burr to Wolcott" by Mark Allen Baker, 2014).

The difference is in the outlook of the thankful heart. Blessings can always be found when gratitude lights our way.

Tuning in ...

The “Music and the Spoken Word” broadcast is available on KSL-TV, KSL Radio 1160 AM/102.7 FM, ksl.com, KSL X-stream, BYU-TV, BYU Radio, BYU-TV International, CBS Radio Network, Dish Network, DirecTV, SiriusXM Radio (Channel 143), mormontabernaclechoir.organd youtube.com/mormontabchoir. The program is aired live on Sundays at 9:30 a.m. MST on many of these outlets. Look up broadcast information by state and city at musicandthespokenword.org/schedules.

In closing my blog today, I want to say! 

+

 

Come Unto The Savior - His Hands Can Heal You ~

The past few days I have had some medical issues. I am doing well but don't know for sure a diagnosis. There is always a fear of the unknown when different struggles appear in our lives. What I do know is there is one person who I can always depend upon and that is of course, my missionary and eternal companion. He is always there for me. Together we know that we have a Savior, Jesus Christ that can heal us. We know as we come unto Him and follow Him; He can reach down, lift us up and help us make it through the vicissitudes of life.  These last few days have  given me a chance to pause and really reflect on what I am most grateful for. I do have a Gratitude List. However, for today's post I want to to tell you what tops my Gratitude list. 
As a missionary  our purpose is to invite others to come unto Christ by helping them receive the restored gospel through faith in Jesus Christ and His Atonement, repentance, baptism, receiving the gift of the Holy Ghost and enduring to the end. 
I am so graterful for the Atonement of Jesus Christ. I know that He is the way back to our Heavenly Father. He is the way, the truth and the light. He is the living water that can quench our thirst. He is the true healer of all mankind.  His life reflects his goodness. His hands healed the sick, the blind, the lame, the soul and the sinner.  He taught us how to return to our Father and Him. He loves us like no other can. He knows us and wants us to come unto Him. 
Through the atonement he gave his life for us that we might live again. He suffered for us in the Garden of Gethsemane  that He might know how to succor and lift us from any sin, pain and afflictions that we might have. He did it for us one by one. His atonement is infinite and covers everything. All He asks in return is to follow Him, obey His commandments and receive His ordinances. 
He taught us how to follow Him and do as He did. Through His Hands of pure  love, He taught us how to be His hands too.  
My Granddaughter, Sariah wrote the following Poem entitled: 

His Hands

His hands healed, and they raised the dead

His are hands, that loved and comforted

These hands were clasped in prayer

These hands washed feet with care

Hands that taught and broke the bread

In Gethsemane they wept, as He fervently plead

His loving hands were then tightly bound

Nailed to a cross, then raised above the ground

A testament of His willingness to obey

These powerful hands are now scarred

Our Creator's hands, still outstretched this day

The embrace, is from no creature barred. 

His hands will wipe away your tears

His gentle fingers are steadfastly reaching out

His humble hands will calm your fears

His hands are strong and unfailing, without doubt. 

~Sariah Workman

I trust in my Savior's love for me and for you.  Come To Him - He Can Heal You!

Here is a video of Christ's Atonement through the eyes of children. Enjoy!

Joy- filled October Missionary and Family Moments~

The fall weather has been so beautiful. We decided to ask a very dear couple that we are teaching to go down with us to Ashton Gardens to see the "Light of The World" Sculptures of Jesus Christ's life. It was a lovely clear day and we had so much fun. 

First of all, we had a lunch there and the restaurant's decor is really nice. The food was delicious so that was good too.

There were 57 displays of Scarecrows. Such a variety of creativity was found in all of them We were to vote on our favorite one. It was kind of hard to choose since they were all so unique. Take some time and see if you can spot a favorite among them all. 

The photo below on the Left is a real live person. She was there in the park doing a dramatization of a scary Halloween story. It was spooky, alright! The one on the right is one of my favorites only because it was creepy. 

This wasn't a favorite one because I don't like  politics right now. 

 I must say I found it interesting. 

My very favorite one is the Left upper top one in the photo below. This was called Hero in Heaven. The display is of three little heroes of which one of them passed away. He is the little hero in Heaven. It was precious. I remember reading about their story. 

We always love being with our friends, Jamie and John. We enjoy their fun stories, excellent humor and just have a great time together. 

Here are more photos of the gardens. You can find the photos of our first trip here.

This past two weeks we had 4 Grandson's play their last games for their High School Teams. Two of our Grandsons, who are brothers played in two games up in Idaho that were recorded on Idahosports. com. We were able to watch them play their games on the internet. The very last game the youngest brother, Ethan was able to go into the game and play on the line with his older brother, Austin. It was a spectacular moment.. Our other Grandson, Christian had a great game too; but it wasn't on line, regretfully. 

Austin, Christian and Ethan~

Here below is our Grandson, Joseph. He played his final game at Alta this week. He plays for Wasatch High School in Heber City. 
Regretfully, all of them lost their games, but we want them to know that we loved watching them this year. All four of these great young men played very well and fought hard for their teams. We are sending lots of love and hugs their way! 

 Here are the photos from Joseph's game day!

Joseph with us and his parents~ 

One of the wards we serve in had a Trunk or Treat activity last night. We had so much fun at it. We were able to visit with several of the individuals and families that we are privileged to visit or teach. We love the awesome sisters that we work with too! One of the sisters in the ward came up and said; "Wow, you two dressed up as missionaries". We had a good laugh on that one. 

Today we had the lovely opportunity to attend two wards that had their Primary Children's Sacrament meeting program that is held each year in our church. The Children's theme for this year is  "I Know The Scriptures Are True".

Basically, all the children in the Ward Primary, give short talks, little parts and lots of beautiful songs.I think I cried through most of the two programs. They were fabulous and the Spirit was there testifying of the truths that were taught through words and music. It has been a marvelous month and it's been a delightful Sabbath Day~

Our Missionary Activities and Endearing Moments With Family~

My Eternal companion and now full time missionary companion  and I have had an exceptional month of missionary activities and family fun moments~

We are missing Elder Dutton and Elder Robinson who were transferred out of our area. We recently had a Mission Tour and were able to see them there. Meanwhile, we now have two awesome Sister missionaries in our area. They are Sister Pinkham and Sister Turner. We have been having a great time getting to know them and working with them. Lower right hand photo is of our district. We are missing a few individuals. We really enjoy working and team teaching with the younger missionaries. We learn so much from them. 

Here is our sweet little Great Grandson, Sagan. He is just starting to learn how to play soccer. Here he is on his birthday. He started out in a blue shirt and then got his team shirt and had to put it on. He was so cute and I think he will be a talented soccer player. 

Our dear daughter Christina came from Australia for a 3 week visit. Due to being missionaries we couldn't spend as much time with her as we would have liked too. we did take her to Ashton Gardens at Thanksgiving Point. We had a great day. There is a fabulous new display of Sculptures of our Savior's life. You can take a tour of the this display here.  This area is entitled; "Light of The world Garden." Here are some of the many pictures we took of this beautiful park of garden exhibits. 

Our daughter took two trips while she was here. She went up to Spokane, Washington to see her youngest sister, Tiffani and then she went to Prescott, Arizona to see her younger sister, Jenni. She really enjoyed being with them both. Here they are: Tiffani, Christina and Jenni.  

We also went to The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints General Woman's conference with my Daughter in law, Mary and my Granddaughter in law, Dana. 

Later on my son Sean and Mary with their son Jeffery came over to have some time with Christina. I forgot and didn't take any photos of this activity. 

Next we asked for special permission to take our daughter up to Idaho to see her two older brothers Travis and James' families. We did this over the LDS General Conference weekend. 

We stayed in one of our favorite motels. It is across the street from the river that is in front of the Idaho Falls Temple. It is so beautiful there. I enjoyed taking our dog Sammy for a walk the first morning there. He loved the ducks and other critters. The day was so lovely and relaxing. 

We spent Saturday watching the two conference sessions and enjoying a great dinner with our son Travis, Amanda and their children. Our youngest granddaughter, Haven loved painting her mother's finger nails and then she did her Dad's toenails; he then modeled them for us. Amazing! 

While the men and older boys went to the LDS General Priesthood Conference; the girls and I went shopping at Deseret Book and then a Boutique. Here we are taking a selfie from a mirror. We had so much fun looking at clothes, jewelry, shoes and etc. It was a girls night out moment.
The middle photo is my daughter, Christina, daughter in law, Amanda, myself and my adorable granddaughter, Justice. 

The next day we went to watch the Sunday sessions of conference with our son James, Amber and two of their children, Christian and Averi. Our adorable granddaughter, Taylor Jo was on a trip with a friend. We had a great dinner and lots of fun conversation and laughing. It is such a joy to be with them all. 
This was truly a precious weekend with family and we enjoyed this opportunity to be with them. I was extra happy that Christina was able to see all of her siblings on this trip.  

This is the sports section of my blog. Some fun moments with our grandsons ~

This was the Friday night Sugar Salem High School football game where our two grandson's Austin and Ethan played. They played an exiting game and won. Our other grandson, Christian had a game the night before and then attended this game with his Dad, James our son. 
The Left picture is of Austin, Christian and then Ethan, Austin's brother. The middle photo is of  the two boys with us. The Right picture is of our grandson, Joseph.  We did get to see him play earlier in September. He plays for Wasatch High School in Heber City, Utah. 

This past month we also watched our grand son's Joshua and Jeffery play a soccer game. They are in the upper left hand photo. The Upper right hand photo is of Jeffery. We can't go to all their games but were able to attend one of each of them. The rest of the pictures are of Jeffery playing his soccer game.

 Below is a photo of our grandson Jonathan  playing. He is the goalie for the team. All of them are on good teams and they are fun to watch. I have some talented grandsons. 

My Eternal Companion - Elder Williams~

I am closing this blog post with a picture of my knight in shinning armor. He is armed with a strong and true testimony of the gospel of Jesus Christ. I love having him for my missionary companion. We are working hard and enjoying our missionary endeavors. Some days are hard and we wonder if we are  too old for this full time work. However, we feel so blessed and have witnessed so many miracles in our daily teaching moments. We know that our Savior, Jesus Christ is hastening His work and we are privileged to be part of it. The Gospel of Jesus Christ is meant to bring joy into all of our lives. We know Jesus Christ lives and guides our church today. We recently listened to our Prophet and Apostles speak in our twice a year LDS General Conference. We feel the spirit of the Holy ghost in our lives and we receive His guidance in our missionary work. We have had some wonderful miracles. We know that faith proceeds these miracles. 

Timely Messages From Our Living Prophet And Apostles~

Last week was our General Women's Conference for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. We are one of the largest women's organization in the world. Our motto is "Charity Never Failth". As sisters in the gospel throughout the world we do many acts of service within our homes, wards units, stakes, communities and throughout the world. 

I felt so blessed this year to have my daughter here for Australia, and my daughter in law from Heber, and my Granddaughter in law from Sandy attend this meeting at our Stake Center this year. We had a lovely dinner before hand and then attended the meeting. The messages from our General Relief Society, Young Woman, and our Primary leaders were inspiring and uplifting. President Dieter F. Uchtdorf of the First Presidency of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints gave an marvelous message that brought tears to my eyes. I feel so blessed to be part of this marvelous organization and to be a member this church. My testimony and my continued desire to serve more diligently was increased. 

We received permission from our mission to take our daughter, Christina to Idaho to see her two brothers and their families. We will watch our Simi-annual General Conference. Here we will here wonderful messages from our Prophet, President Thomas S. Monson, his two councilors, President Henry B Eyring, and President Dieter F. Uchtdorf; along with all of our 12 Apostles and other leaders of the church. We will again hear from the sister's of the Relief Society, Young Women and Primary leadership. 

We will receive direction, council, and timely messages for our day. We are so blessed to have a living Prophet to guide us through these Latter-days. 

Come Listen to a Prophet's voice and here the word of God for our day - 

Here is the link for listening to the General Women's Conference and our General Conference over this weekend. Take a moment and watch one of the sessions; you will be happy you did. I know that you will feel the spirit testify to your hearts of the truthfulness of the messages given. 

Receive His Light Into Your Lives~

Through the years I have met some remarkable individuals. Sometimes, I am just overwhelmed with the warmth and love that I receive when I am in their presence. It seems as though they really have a light that surrounds them. I find that they are always warm, kind, loving personalities. There seems to be no guile in them. I love to be around them and enjoy my time with them. I now recognize that we all can have this light in our own lives. It is found in the Light of Christ which is a parting gift given to us as we left our Heavenly Father's presence to come to earth to participate in this mortal life. It is our conscience; our our ability to know and choose good from evil. When we make good choices this light is more apparent in our lives. This Light of Christ can then lead us to the Gospel of Jesus Christ where we can receive further light through the Gift of the Holy Ghost 
I have also felt the lack of light in individuals who are choosing evil over good. At one time I worked in a Hospice Hospital and we had a patient that was brought in for care. He was a terminally ill man.  When I first entered his room there was such a dark feeling in the room. Even talking to him brought chills that ran down my spine. I didn't want to stay in the room. We later found out that he was into sadistic child pornography and had a large arrest record for those kinds of crimes. However, we did take care of him but it was difficult because you could just feel the evil that surrounded him.
From the New Testament; Matthew 6: 22-23:
 22. "The light of the body is the eye; if therefore thine eye be single, thy whole body shall be full of light. 
23.But if thine eye be evil, thy whole body shall be full of darkness. If therefore the light that is in thee be darkness, how great is that darkness!"

Elder Larry R. Lawrence in an message found in the Ensign, March 2016, states the following: "Would you be surprised to learn that your success in life depends upon how much light you gain while you are here? ............The real objective of our existence is to gain light. .................."God is light, and in him is no darkness at all? (1 John1:5). 

Our Father in Heaven was once a mortal man who gradually progressed until He became a being with a fullness of light. He wants the same for you and me because a fullness of light means a fullness of joy." 
"That which is of God is light; and he that receiveth light, and continueth in God, receiveth more light; and that light groweth brighter and brighter until the perfect day" (D &C 50:24). 
Elder Larry R. Lawrence continues in this article to suggest ways that we can obtain more light in our lives. I will comment on his suggestions. You can read his whole message here. 
1. Love Others - In the New Testament in Matthew 22:36-38 it states: 
36. Master, which is the great commandment in the law?
37. Jesus said unto him, Thou shalt love the Lord they God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all they mind.
38. This is the first and great commandment.
39. And the second is like unto it, thou shalt love thy neighbor as thyself. 
I do love people. It is part of my nature to do so. Yes, I am not perfect at it. I do at times become upset with individuals and not like what they choose to do but I do love and care about them.  I sincerely love my Heavenly Father and Savior Jesus Christ. I want to be a disciple of Christ. When I read of His life and love for all mankind; I want to follow Him and do as He would do. 
As a Nurse through the years I learned  many lesson of compassion and understanding from working with those in physical and mental anguish. Now as a missionary I find myself working more with those that have spiritual and emotional struggles that seem hard to bare. With all of the various trials of life; I now know and realize that the answer really is to love one another as the Savior loves us. I know beyond doubt that if we will come unto Christ; He alone can heal us. He loves us all and wants to help us through whatever kinds of pain that we may be inflicted with. As we love Him; He wants us to be His hands and serve and love one another. I know this to be true. As our beloved Prophet, President Thomas S. Monson has said: "Love is the essence of the Gospel".
2. Study the scriptures - In my own life I made a commitment a long time ago to study the scriptures daily. This has had a huge impact on my life. As I read God's word given in both the Bible, The Book of Mormon , Doctrine and Covenants; and the Pearl of Great Price;  my mind is opened up to more light. I learn more about my Savior Jesus Christ, who is the light of the world. As I study His life and His dealings with mankind; I learn more about the qualities that He has and I desire to be more like Him. In likening the scriptures unto myself; I have learned more about myself and I have received direction for my life. I find that when I am upset about a circumstance in my life or a sad event has occurred; I receive great comfort from reading the scriptures. I know that answers to life's questions are found in the scriptures. I know that The Book of Mormon was written for our day and it's messages are for us. It is imperative that we read it and liken it unto ourselves. 
3. Obey the commandments - Not only do we have the 10 commandments of old; which are even more relevant today than ever before. There are other commandments that have blessed my life. I am not perfect in obeying the commandments; I do make mistakes. However, as I recognize those mistakes I repent, or change and try to put my life back in harmony with the teachings of Christ. The commandments are my guideposts for Christ like living. I have been blessed in so many ways by obeying the commandments and I feel more of the light of Christ in my life.
4. Hearken to the Holy Ghost - As the a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, I have the privilege of having this gift with me always; if I am worthy of it. I know at times when I make poor choices that I do not feel the Holy Ghost. When I do have the spirit with me, I feel more comfort, joy and help in my sojourn of life. I try hard to listen for the spiritual promptings. I know that when I act upon these promptings that I will receive more. When we listen and obey, we do obtain more light and knowledge. Often the promptings will lead us to help others; which is exactly what the Savior wants us to do. 
5. Serve in the temple - The temple is one of the places that one can find true light. Within these sacred walls, great light and truth are found. Here is the place to go for peace, comfort and holy instructions. Here is where one can feel the spirit and receive revelation for our own lives. I have experienced this. I have had some profound experiences in the temple so I know that it is the Lord's house. When we serve in the temple we are blessed with added light.
 Elder Larry R. Lawrence states the following: "There is so much light and truth to be gained from  temple service that the temple may be referred to as the University of the Lord. Temple light is even more beneficial to your spirit than sunlight is to your body. Consider yourself blessed if you are able to bask in this heavenly light on a regular basis." 
6. Be a light - We should all be a light to the world; no matter where we are. In the New Testament; Matthew 5: 14-16 states:
 "14. Ye are the light of the world. A city that is set on an hill cannot be hid. 
15.Neither do men light a candle, and put it under a bushel, but on a candlestick; and it giveth light unto all that are in the house.
17. Let your light so shine before me, that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father which is in heaven."
May we be a light to the world and chase a way the darkness that surrounds us. Receive the light of the Savior into your life is my prayer for all!