Sunday Recap- Missionary Work

A big thank you to Jo Ann Jones for giving the lesson.

Missionary Work- Chapter 33 Gospel Principles Manual.

Missionary Work is part of God's plan for His children.

Missionary Work has always been on the earth from the beginning of time.

When Jesus was on the earth, he called apostles and seventies to preach. Paul was one of the greatest missionaries in Christ's time.

Missionary work began again when the Lord's church was restored on the earth through the Prophet Joseph Smith. In June 1830, Samuel Harrison Smith, the Prophet's brother, began the first missionary journey for the Church.

Since that time over one million missionaries have been called and sent forth to preach the gospel. The message they take to the world is that Jesus Christ is the Son of God & our Savior. They testify that the gospel has been restored to the earth through a prophet of God.

The Gospel will be preached to All the World

For verily, the sound must go forth from this place into all the world, and unto the uttermost parts of the earth- the gospel must be preached unto every creature, with signs following them that believe (D&C 58:64)

If you want to learn more about the church and have questions, please visit: http://mormon.org for more information.

Every member of the Church is a missionary. We are responsible to teach the gospel by word & deed to ALL of our Heavenly Father's children.

There are many ways to share the gospel. The manual lists 10.

1. We can show friends and others the joy we experience from living the truths of the gospel. In this way we will be a light to the world (Matthew 5:16)
2. We can overcome our natural shyness by being friendly to others and doing kind things for them. We can help them see that we are sincerely interested in then and not seeking personal gain.
3. We can explain the gospel to nonmember friends and others.
4. We can invite friends who are interested in learning more about the gospel into our homes to be taught by the missionaries. If our nonmember friends live too far away, we can request that missionaries in their areas visit them.
5. We can teach our children the importance of sharing the gospel, and we can prepare then spiritually and financially to go on missions. We can also prepare ourselves to serve full time missions in our senior years.
6. We can pay our tithing and contribute to the missionary fund. These donations are used for furthering missionary work.
7. We can contribute to the ward, branch or general missionary fund to give financial support to missionaries whose families are unable to support them.
8. We can do family history research and temple work to help our ancestors receive the full blessings of the gospel.
9. We can invite nonmember friends to activities such as family home evenings and Church socials, conferences, and meetings.
10. We can give copies of Church magazines. We can also share gospel messages by using features available on the Church's official Interent sites, LDS.org and Mormon.org.

The Lord promises us blessings for doing Missionary Work.

The Lord has told us:

"If it so be that ye should labor all your days in crying repentance unto this people, and bring, save it be one soul unto me, how great shall be your joy with him in the kingdom of my Father! And now, if your joy will be great with one soul that you have brought unto me into the kingdom of my Father, how great will be your joy if you should bring many souls unto me!" (D&C 18:15-16)

Every Member a Missionary!

You are your biggest convert!

I challenge us all to seek for opportunities to share the gospel with those around us. We will be blessed because of our efforts.

Announcements!

Stay with me people, there are a lot of announcements this week.

Monday June 8th FHE-Meet at the church at 7:00

Thursday June 7th:Sports night we are playing flag football and meeting at the football field. Come and have fun. 

Saturday June 8th is the SUPER ACTIVITY! We will meet at 4:00 at the man's camp by the powerplant. There will be sport activites. Dinner at 7:00. Then Riley Nielson quarterback from BYU will speak to us . Afterwards from 9-12:00 there will be a dance. Hope to see you there.

We are planning a temple trip for June 14th. We will be doing an endowment session as well as baptisms for the dead. Please contact a member of the branch presidency if you have any questions or concerns.At 2:00 pm we will meet at the baptistry and then those who are endowed will go to a sesssion and those who are doing baptisms will stay there. Afterwards there will be pizza.

Sunday June17is Branch Conference.

Are We Not All Mothers?
By Emily taken from Sheri Dew's Oct. 2001 General Conference talk.

"Motherhood is more than bearing children...It is the essence of who we are as women."

"Loving and leading—these words summarize not only the all-consuming work of the Father and the Son, but the essence of our labor, for our work is to help the Lord with His work. How, then, may we as Latter-day women of God best help the Lord with His work?"

"Prophets have repeatedly answered this question, as did the First Presidency six decades ago when they called motherhood “the highest, holiest service … assumed by mankind."

"It is a doctrine about which we must be clear if we hope to stand “steadfast and immovable” regarding the issues that swirl around our gender. For Satan has declared war on motherhood. He knows that those who rock the cradle can rock his earthly empire. And he knows that without righteous mothers loving and leading the next generation, the kingdom of God will fail."

"When we understand the magnitude of motherhood, it becomes clear why prophets have been so protective of woman’s most sacred role. While we tend to equate motherhood solely with maternity, in the Lord’s language, the word mother has layers of meaning. Of all the words they could have chosen to define her role and her essence, both God the Father and Adam called Eve “the mother of all living” —and they did so before she ever bore a child. Like Eve, our motherhood began before we were born. Just as worthy men were foreordained to hold the priesthood in mortality, righteous women were endowed premortally with the privilege of motherhood. Motherhood is more than bearing children, though it is certainly that. It is the essence of who we are as women. It defines our very identity, our divine stature and nature, and the unique traits our Father gave us."

"President Gordon B. Hinckley stated that “God planted within women something divine.” That something is the gift and the gifts of motherhood. Elder Matthew Cowley taught that “men have to have something given to them [in mortality] to make them saviors of men, but not mothers, not women. [They] are born with an inherent right, an inherent authority, to be the saviors of human souls … and the regenerating force in the lives of God’s children.”

"As daughters of our Heavenly Father, and as daughters of Eve, we are all mothers and we have always been mothers. And we each have the responsibility to love and help lead the rising generation. How will our young women learn to live as women of God unless they see what women of God look like, meaning what we wear, watch, and read; how we fill our time and our minds; how we face temptation and uncertainty; where we find true joy; and why modesty and femininity are hallmarks of righteous women? How will our young men learn to value women of God if we don’t show them the virtue of our virtues?"

"Every one of us has an overarching obligation to model righteous womanhood because our youth may not see it anywhere else. Every sister in Relief Society, which is the most significant community of women on this side of the veil, is responsible to help our young women make a joyful transition into Relief Society. This means our friendship with them must begin long before they turn 18. Every one of us can mother someone—beginning, of course, with the children in our own families but extending far beyond. Every one of us can show by word and by deed that the work of women in the Lord’s kingdom is magnificent and holy. I repeat: We are all mothers in Israel, and our calling is to love and help lead the rising generation through the dangerous streets of mortality."

"We just can’t let the Lord down. And if the day comes when we are the only women on earth who find nobility and divinity in motherhood, so be it. For mother is the word that will define a righteous woman made perfect in the highest degree of the celestial kingdom, a woman who has qualified for eternal increase in posterity, wisdom, joy, and influence."

Even as singles we can be a mother to our families, people we meet on the streets, and to those we visit teach. It is our divine role and we should not be ashamed.

May 19th Branch BBQ at the Palamar 6:30 pm. We will have delicious food and be playing kick-ball as well as card games. Welcome to all senors.

May 22nd Visiting Teaching Training at the 1st Ward's church building 6:00 pm. Sister Beck said that "visiting teachers are the first responders." We are excited to have the Stake Relief Society Presidency come and inspire us to do visiting teaching and also give ways and ideas on how to do visiting teaching effectively. Treats are a given.

Tuesday April 26th Relief Society Activity: Hula hooping, Come and learn a few fun tricks with the hula hoop. Its great exercise and a lot of fun. Jump back to the years of your carefree life as a child. 7:00 pm at the 1 ward's church building.

March 16th, Girls Night In--Come and enjoy time with the girls doing manicures and pedicures and learn different natural facial masks and cleansers.

June 11th, Super Activity--Take the opportunity to get to know other singles in central Utah as we go to the ropes course over in Ephraim and then indulge in a delicious New Zealand luau with live entertainment and a special speaker.

Tonight CES Fireside at the Stake Center, 6:00 pm Elder L. Tom Perry

FHE Monday at the 1st Ward building, 7:00 pm, Faith Factor

Sunday 13th Fireside at the Hinkley building, 6:00 pm

March 19th Relief Society Fireside at the Stake Center, 7:00 pm

General Conference April 2 and 3

Things Aren't Always What They Appear to Be
Given by Bessie Skeem

She told the story of a man who was raised in foster care and without a friend in the world who decided one year that he was going to make the best of Christmas. As he left the grocery store he was hit by a car. He had a broken leg, arm and ribs. He thought to himself of how everything was going wrong for him. Next to him was a man who just came out of surgery. They began to talk and this preacher inspired him to thank Heavenly Father for his trials. As he did the preachers wife came into the room. He told her of his background and to his surprise she was his sister and that he six more brothers and sisters. Because of the accident he was able to find out who he was and that he had a family.

Romans 8:28 And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose.

Though thing look bad or even people, we can not see what they truly are. They may have a chocolate cupcake inside.

1 Samuel 16:7 But the Lord said unto Samuel Look not on his countenance, or on the height of his stature; because I have refused him: for the Lord seeth not as man seeth; for man looketh on the outward appearance, but the Lord looketh on the heart.

Trust in the Lord for he knows all. Leave the judging to Him.

Mosiah 4: 9 Believe in God; believe that he is, and that he created all things, both in heaven and in earth; believe that he has all wisdom, and all power, both in heaven and in earth; believe that man doth not comprehend all the things which the Lord can comprehend.

Work and Personal Responsibility
Given by Shanel Bliss

Work is an antidote for anxiety.

Not all of us can choose the kind of work we do. Some of us labor for long hours for the bare necessities. It is difficult to enjoy such work. Yet the happiest people have learned to enjoy their work, whatever it is.

Our attitude toward work is very important. The following story shows how one man saw beyond his daily labor. A traveler passed a stone quarry and saw three men working. he asked each man what he was doing. Each man's answer revealed a different attitude toward the same job. "I am cutting stone," the first man answered. The second replied, "I am earning three gold pieces per day." The third man smiled and said, "I am helping to build a house of God."

Honesty--Quintin L. Cook, Nov. 2010 Ensign, Let there be Light.
'The thirteenth article of faith begins, "We believe in being honest." Honesty is a principle founded in religious belief and is one of God's basic laws.

Many years ago when I was practicing law in California, a friend and client who was not a member of our faith came in to see me and with great enthusiasm showed me a letter he had received from an LDS bishop of a nearby ward. The bishop wrote that a member of his congregation, a former employee of my client, had taken materials from my client's work site and had rationalized that they were surplus. But after becoming a committed Latter-day Saint and attempting to follow Jesus Christ, this employee recognized that what he had done was dishonest. Enclosed in the letter was a sum of money from the man to cover not only the cost of the materials but also interest. My client was impressed that the Church through lay leadership would assist this man in his efforts to be reconciled to God.'

From the earliest days of the Church, the prophets have taught Latter-day Saints to be independent and self-sustaining and to avoid idleness. True Latter-day Saints will not voluntarily shift from themselves the burden of their own support. So long as they are able, they will supply themselves and their families with the necessities of life.

We should each find the proper balance between work recreation, and rest. There is an old saying: "Ding nothing is the hardest work of all , because one can never stop to rest." Without work, rest and relaxation have no meaning.

On other days of the week, in addition to working, we may spend time to improve our talents and enjoy our hobbies, recreation, or other activities that will refresh us.

There is no real division between spiritual, mental, and physical work. Work is essential to each of us for growth, character development, and may satisfactions that the idle never know.

President David O McKay said, "Let us realize that the privilege to work is a gift, that the power to work is a blessing, that the love of work is success."

"Men are, that they might have joy" (2 Nephi 2: 25). Work is a key to full joy in the play of God. If we are righteous, we will return to live with our Heavenly Father, and we will have work to do. As we become like Him, our work will become like His work. His work is "to bring to pass the immortality and eternal life of man" (Moses 1:39).

FHE Monday 7:00p.m. at the church. Game Board Night.

Stake Conference Adult session Saturday the 26th at 7:00 p.m.
Sunday session the 27th at 10:00 a.m.

Super Activity June 11, 2011.

Chapter 26: Sacrifice
Given by Sharlynn Campbell

The Meaning of Sacrifice
Sacrifice means giving to the Lord whatever He requires of our time, our earthly possessions, and our energies to further His work. The Lord commanded, "Seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness" (Matthew 6:33). Our willingness to sacrifice is an indication of our devotion to God. People have always been tried and tested to see if they will put the things of God first in their lives.

The Law of Sacrifice was Practiced Anciently
They were commanded to offer as sacrifices the firstlings of their flocks. These animals had to be perfect, without blemish. The ordinance was given to remind the people that Jesus Christ, the Firstborn of the Father, would come into the world. He would be perfect in every way, and He would offer Himself as a sacrifice for our sins.

Because of His sacrifice, everyone will be saved from physical death by the Resurrection and all can be saved from their sins through faith in Jesus Christ. Christ's atoning sacrifice marked the end of sacrifices by the shedding of blood. Such outward sacrifice was replaced by the ordinance of the sacrament. The ordinance of the sacrament was given to remind us of the Savior's great sacrifice. We should partake of the sacrament often. The emblems of bread and water remind us of the Savior's body and of His blood, which he shed for us.

We Still Must Sacrifice
Even though sacrifice by the shedding of blood was ended, the Lord still asks us to sacrifice. But now He requires a different kind of offering. He said: "Ye shall offer up unto me no more the shedding of blood,...and your burnt offerings shall be done away. ...And ye shall offer for a sacrifice unto me a broken heart and a contrite spirit" (3 Nephi 9:19-20). A "broken heart and a contrite spirit" means that we offer deep sorrow for our sins as we humble ourselves and repent of them.

Sacrifice Helps Us Prepare to Live in the Presence of God
Only through sacrifice can we become worthy to live in the presence of God. Only through sacrifice can we enjoy eternal life. many who have lived before us have sacrificed all they had. We must be willing to do the same if we would earn the rich reward they enjoy.
We may not be asked to sacrifice all thins. But like Abraham, we should be willing to sacrifice everything to become worthy to live in the presence of the Lord.

FHE-Monday at 7:00 p.m. at the church. Game night

Sunday the 20th the chapel is being used so sacrament meeting will be in either the Relief Society room or the back of the Cultural Hall.

Stake Conference Feb. 26, 27 Saturday night session is at 7:00 p.m. Sunday session is at 10:00 a.m.

Super Activity June 11, 2011. More info coming soon!!!

Keeping Our Focus on Christ
Given by Rebecca Hamblin

Story of the Sunflower: "Clytie was a sea nymph who wore beautiful green gowns woven of seaweed. Her long, golden hair floated about her at the bottom of the sea. One day a mermaid sang her a song about a golden light above the water. Clytie wanted to see it!
She swam to the surface and climbed onto the shore. She saw the golden light described in the song...It was the sun! She stood happily gazing at it all day. When she at last turned to the water, she saw her reflection. Her golden hair had become yellow petals; her green gown had become leaves. Her tiny feet had become roots. She had become a sunflower, a small image of the sun she loved.
To this day, the sunflowers turn on their stems all through the day so that they can gaze upon the sun as it travels the sky."

Clytie had become a small image of the sun just as we must become a small image of the Son of God. To become like Christ we must do as Clytie had done.

1. She had a desire to see the sun, in turn we need to have that desire to come unto Christ.
2. She took the action required. It takes action on our part to study and develop faith in Christ.
3. She engulfed herself in the sun's light. We can engulf ourselves in the light of the Savior by going to our Sunday meeting and doing those things we know to be right.

"It is amazing what darkness can do. It has an unsettling effect, altering our perception and creating a sense of unease. Uncertainty surrounds us and often the dangers that are lurking around us are hidden from our view. The best way to move forward through these perilous times is to focus on the teachings of Christ." Emily Freeman

By keeping our focus on Christ we will have the strength and ability to accomplish the purposes Relief Society and your own spirituality.

1. Strengthen your own light by increasing your faith and personal righteousness.

"To do our part under the plan of the Lord, we are to increase our faith and personal righteousness. Membership in the Church requires faith, which we nourish throughout our lives with great “diligence, and patience, and long-suffering.” Sister Julie B. Beck

We can increase our own faith by:

• Studying the scriptures
• Having sincere and meaningful prayer
• Repenting of sins
• Studying the living prophets, ect.

2. Fortify your light by strengthening home and family.

"Our ... responsibility is to strengthen families and homes. Families worldwide are being assaulted and weakened by corrupt practices and false teachings. Therefore, whether we are married or single, old or young, we have a duty to defend and practice the truths found in 'The Family: A Proclamation to the World.' Relief Society should be organized, aligned, and mobilized to strengthen families and help our homes to be sacred sanctuaries from the world."Sister Julie B. Beck

To make our home a sanctuary we must cleanse it of things that are offensive to the spirit and to show love to the family members that live there.

3 ways to show love:

1. Service
2. Giving
3. Verbal

3. Share your light by serving the Lord and His children.

"In my travels across the world, I have seen that the thousands upon thousands of you who do not currently have a husband or children are an incredible reservoir of faith, talent, and dedication. No one is better positioned than you to work in temples, serve missions, teach the rising generation, and help those who are downtrodden. The Lord needs you." Sister Julie B. Beck