* Dad went hunting in Montana with Bill W. and Kevin. They took Kevin's trailer and headed out on Wednesday (and returned home Saturday evening)... Dad was excited to get a doe and get some meat in our freezer! He is now officially a resident of Idaho and will be able to hunt much closer to home next year!
* Mom has done LOTS for Young Womens. Two big events were put on. Last week was the Stake Auxiliary training where they had every position in the YW organization (including camp directors, advisors, sports directors, personal progress leaders and of course the Presidencies) from all 10 wards in the Stake come to the Stake Center for a "Cruise Night" (think Nautical/Ship Cruise)... It went over very well and all of the feedback was positive and they thought it was beneficial!
* Mom also did quite a bit for the big 5-Stake Priest/Laurel Girl-Ask-Guy Dance. The youth had come up with a Sports Theme and since our Stake was in charge of the Refreshments, we set up a "Concession Stand" and served Nachos, Popcorn, Mini Corn Dogs, a large variety of candies and chocolates and then had Gatorade for drinks (also all dictated by the Youth Council)... Mom and the other YW Counselor along with the 2 counselors from the Stake YM Presidency ran it and it was actually a lot of fun!
* Ben had several game nights with Isaac, Logan, Matthew and Nathan
* The girls had many play dates with Lauren - both at her house and over here
* Dad and Seth attended the BSU vs BYU game at Bronco Stadium. It was a nail-biter game but BSU came out ahead with a final score of 21-16.
* HALLOWEEN! We did pumpkin carving, attended the Trunk or Treat at the church and then mom, Nathan and the girls hit the neighborhoods for even more candy! Ben went to the Trunk or Treat and then went to a party at Sebastian's house. He also had a Seminary Trunk or Treat that took place at lunch that he attended.
As mentioned in the last Spiritually Speaking, I have made a goal to attend 2 Endowment sessions each week - I'm happy to report that so far, I have succeeded in that goal AND I have taken action upon that inspiration that I needed to keep a journal of thoughts, feelings and revelation that I receive while in the Temple. I have been given an assignment (for November 18th) to speak in the 35th Ward on Family Councils and this has been very much on the forefront of my mind. I think of it while reading my scriptures, listening to talks and as I went to the Temple, I prayed about what direction Heavenly Father wanted me to go with on this topic. Early on, I did receive a few thoughts - but I wanted MORE! I wanted to think of specific examples from my life to be able to share and implement into the talk. As I kept reading, pondering, praying and attending the Temple with this subject on my mind, it seemed like the Heavens were closed and I wasn't able to receive anymore light. It was then that I realized that I hadn't written down any of my former thoughts and feelings and so decided to do so... the super amazing thing is that ONCE I started writing down all that had been given to me (up to that point) then my mind opened up and I was able to recall personal experiences and additional things to study that might be of help to me! This brought me back and reminded me that when I showed Heavenly Father that what he had already given to me was of importance (and I wrote them down!) then, further revelation was able to happen. It's like that little bit of light was given and as I proceeded forth in faith - the next steps were able to be shown to me :)
*******************************************
Another experience with revelation is I've been super concerned about some of Ben's homeschooling program and realizing that there is still SO MUCH for him to learn before he graduates next year! He does great with his one-on-one classes with me AND he does great when learning about things that he's interested in but not so much when he doesn't think something is useful or beneficial to him... so this was a question I was going to take to the Temple (What can I do to make sure Ben is getting everything that he needs in regards to his education). In my morning prayer one morning I mentioned how that was the question I'd be taking to the Temple and hoping to receive revelation on. Then an AMAZING thing happened... The words "You don't have to wait until you're in the Temple - I'll tell you what you need to know right now!"came into my mind! (AMAZING, RIGHT?!) Then I got the revelation that I need to institute a minimum of 1 hour a day of "Personal Passion Learning" for Ben. This is where he will dedicate at least an hour a day researching, learning or delving into ANYTHING he wants to learn about - it could be anything from watching a documentary on Netflix to watching a Ted Talk on YouTube or listening to the (many!) wonderful podcasts to researching on wikipedia or signing up and doing an online course. I spent quite a bit of time compiling many resources and links to help him in this endeavor and to give him safe places and a spring board of ideas. As part of this, he will be keeping a journal and writing down summaries of what he learns each day. When I approached Ben with this and shared with him my experience he said he truly felt this was inspired of the Lord and he is super excited to implement this! We are kicking this off this coming week and so in addition to his Seminary, Enrichment, Math, Chemistry, History, Shakespeare and writing, he will be doing an hour of his "Personal Passion" Learning. We'll report back on how this plays out. This is also another reason why I love homeschooling! I can turn to the Lord (who loves my Benny more than anyone - and wants him to be successful!) and can receive revelation on what exactly he needs! I'm thankful for the opportunity to teach him and to guide him with attaining knowledge.
**************************************
Stake Conference
Nampa West Stake
This weekend was our Stake Conference and I walked away with pages of notes and an uplifted spirit! I wanted to jot down a few of the things that really stood out to me:
Brother Nelson (Stake Sunday School President)
Shared on the new Home Centered Church Assisted Curriculum and here are some take aways:
* I must prepare myself first
* Recommit each Sunday (some weeks will be better than others and I just need to recommit to teaching the family each Sunday
President Wilford (2nd Counselor in the Stake Presidency)
Talked on Preventive Maintenance - just like we do preventive maintenance with our vehicles or even with our teeth at the Dentist, our spirits, spiritual health and our lives need preventative maintenance and that can come by Being More Diligent in Keeping the Sabbath Day Holy.
He went on to share that when he was a Bishop a few years ago (in 2015) he was at a Bishop's Training and how it was all about keeping the Sabbath day holy and more specifically in these 3 areas:
1. PREPARING for the Sabbath We can do this by preparing our hearts and mind throughout the week to be ready and prepared for the Sabbath. We can prepare on Saturday all of the logistical things that need to be done and also the house cleaning and chores can be done so that the house is "Sabbath Ready".
2. KEEPING the Sabbath Day Holy at Church The purpose of Church is to draw ourselves to Heaven and partake of the Sacrament. Be Spiritually prepared to take the Sacrament and be reverent. "Reverence Precedes Revelation"
3. KEEPING the Sabbath Day Holy at Home Don't get caught up and set rigid schedules or requirements. Ask myself "What sign am I giving to Heavenly Father with what I am doing on the Sabbath." Home is the basis of a Righteous Life
Questions to Ponder:
Do I truly understand the purpose of the Sabbath?
Do I look to the Sabbath as Delight?
Brother Hyer (the YM Stake President)
His talk was all about the Temple and was sooo inspiring and uplifting! If there's just one quote to take away from it, it would be:
"Plan our lives around the Temple and not the Temple around our lives."
* We must make an appointment with the Temple and then KEEP IT!
* Spending Time in the Temple is ESSENTIAL for our Spiritual Well-Being
Questions to Ponder:
What is my expectation when I attend the Temple?
What have I received by attending the Temple?
What can I do to have a "Temple Experience"?
We also heard from both the Nampa Idaho Mission President and his wife, the new 2nd Counselor in the Boise Temple Presidency (who just got put in Nov. 1st) and his wife and then our Stake President went over our Area Plan and challenged us to make goals in 4 areas:
1. Member Missionary Service
2. Temple and Family History
3. One on One Ministering
4. Sabbath Day Observance
It was a very wonderful weekend and I am feeling renewed and inspired!
Also, Ben received a calling from the Stake to be a member of the P.I.E. Council. This stands for Priesthood In Excellence and each year the 16-18 year old boys go on a P.I.E. retreat that is 3 days of spiritual experiences and teaches the boys more about their Priesthood (think of the spirituality of Girls Camp Testimony meeting for 3 days straight! haha)... the PIE Presidency (made up of Priests from the Stake) recommend other Priests from the Stake to serve on the Council to help plan and execute PIE in the summer and Ben was recommended and called today after Conference was over. I think this will be a super amazing experience for him!
****************************************
I had mentioned earlier how we did a Stake Auxiliary Training but WHAT we did was really neat! The Stake YW President had each of us (in the Presidency) find 4 quotes from General Conference and come up with a question to go along with it that would help the YW leaders in their callings. After each of us came up with the quotes, I designed them up in photoshop and printed them on cardstock and had them hanging on the wall during our training. It took quite a bit of time to design them all up so it made me feel good to see several of the sisters taking pictures of them afterwards and commenting on how nice they were. Anyway, doing this has inspired me to look at quotes in a different light and try to associate a question to better myself! Here are a few of the quotes and questions we presented that night!
Question: How have you seen your spiritual gifts or the spiritual gifts of your young women make a difference in the world around them?
Question: How have the “whisperings of the Spirit” helped you prepare and teach Sunday lessons? What challenges have you faced while teaching that you’ve overcome with the help of the Spirit?
Question: What ways have you found successful to help the youth find joy in serving?
Question: How would following these 3 words change the way you fulfilled your calling?
No comments:
Post a Comment