Happy Sabbath,
I am so glad to be back in Irvine and be able to attend the Lake Ward with you today! Here is a wrap up of the goings on today.
Martine J, John W, Scott M were all called to be ward missionaries. There were 2 members released from callings; Jeanette J from the Fellowshipping committe and Beth B from the FHE committee.
Jillian T gave a wonderful talk today. She pointed out that we all make determination of others all the time. She told a story of when her brother was playing the part of Judd Fry, in Oklahoma, on the stage. He got into the part and grew a straggly beard and let his hair grow long. When she first saw him, she thought he looked a little scary - and he is her brother! She went out to dinner with him and was afraid that the people in the restaurant would judge him because of his looks. Much to her surprise, and joy, his personality came through his exterior looks and everyone accepted him. Jillian pointed out that we are all God's children and we need to treat each other as such. God looks not on the outside, but on the heart and we need to do the same thing. Sometimes we criticize others, and ourselves - Satan preys on our weakness. Jillian reminded us that if we don't see ourselves as God's children, how could we see others that way. She ended her talk by reading Moroni 7: 15-16 where Moroni tells us that "it is given unto you to judge, that ye may know good from evil."
Tim C's exultant talk was on the blessings of temple attendance. The word temple literally means House of the Lord. Tim told us about the various temples that have been built, starting with Moses' portable temple, Solomon's temple, with it's unparalleled quality and pointed out that there were no temples on the earth after Christ's death until the Kirtland temple was built in 1836, except for the temple built by the Nephites. Tim quoted 1 Peter 4:6 where it says, "For this cause was the gospel preached also to them that are dead, that they might be judged according to men in the flesh, but live according to God in the spirit", pointing out the need for temples so that we can do the saving ordinances for the dead. Temples are places of covenants and promises. All the workers, inside and out, are volunteers. Temples are a place where we can escape the mundane and see our lives in an eternal perspective. Our salvation is linked to our ancestors, we can't be sealed and saved without them. As we emulate the pattern of the Savior and give service to those who are dead, we save ourselves.
In Gospel Doctrine we talked about Proverbs and Ecclesiastes. There are lots of precious truths found in those books and we read quite a few through both books.
In a combined Relief Society & Priesthood meeting, Kristen C taught a lesson based on Sister Beck's talk. The quote that Kristen drew from was, "We know we are successful if we live so that we qualify for, receive and know how to follow the Spirit." We spoke about those 3 points; 1-qualify for, 2- receive, and 3-know how to follow the spirit. It was a great lesson with lots of participation.
Thanks to all for making each Sunday a wonderful, spiritual feast.
With much love,
Debbie
