Homecoming Report Weekend
We had a busy weekend. Cole came down from BYU driving by himself and arrived in time to go to dinner with us at Don Pedro's. It was a great start to the weekend having my favorite Mexican food in St. George. David and his family came down and stayed with John, arriving about 2 am. They like to travel that way as the kids are mostly asleep and the journey is peaceful. Saturday we got to attend the baptism of Mason Corry Stevens. He was such a handsome 8 year old in his suit. He had practiced with his father and was confident to be baptized. Austin gave a very good talk on baptism and Jana gave a wonderful talk using props about the Holy Ghost that made it very personal to Mason.
Sunday we were thrilled to have 11 PPM missionaries attend our report. They sang the mission song with us and it was so great. I love that song! We had the parents of Amber Ricks travel up from Gilbert AZ for our report and Amy McNeil came with her fiance, BJ Vickers and her parents. We met the parents of Elder Tyler and Sister Jolley at our report today and it was wonderful to see them. We had 3 of our Student Ward kids come with their kids or fiance and that was good. Deonna and Neil Fuller came. Bob and Twila and Kent Harman came. Lindsay and Chris came and brought uncle Calvin Perkins. Carolyn Kimmerle and Francine Shumway came with their spouses. Loralee Barrow and family came. It was wonderful and we were quite overwhelmed. Sister Young surprised us and came from California. It was just such a wonderful feeling throughout the entire day and we just felt so good about it.
Sister Amber Ricks and her parents came over Saturday for an extended visit and again today. We got to serve with this sister in Broomall and think so very highly of her talents.
Sister Kindra Wilson and Kaydee Taylor attend BYUI. They called at nearly 10 pm last night and stayed til midnight talking. It was very fun to visit with them.
The PPM group minus Elder Shepherd and Elder Brown. These are all those that sang the mission song with us.
Sister Amy McNeil and Elder BJ Vickers are engaged. Sister McNeil is very special to us as we delight in seeing her progress and happiness.
Neil and Deonna Fuller came today. They were our neighbors in Blanding and Neil was Corry's Asst. Coach for basketball. They served in Palmyra, NY and just got called to serve in St. George at the historic sights. We are going to be able to see them! We got to go to dinner with them Thursday night. We have so very much to catch up on.
The Sisters from the PPM. We were so very happy they came!
Sister Rachel Young cleaned our apartment before we moved in. We will forever love her for the wonderful job she did. She is still steadily dating her boyfriend, but no engagement yet.
Sister Collette Whitaker served with us in Broomall for a couple of transfers. She is such a cutie and we love her.
Sister Annabelle Hyatt came with Sister Whitaker. Elder Jones had lots of dealings with her and cars.
Our grandkids, our best support! How we love them. Abby is pictured above with a splint on her arm as she was playing basketball and took a tumble. Sister McNeil's father had first aid experience and bandaged her up to support the injury. We think it might be broken...The whole day was just such a sweet memory for us and we are very grateful for all those who attended and made us feel so special. What a perfect way to end our mission experience.
Marilyn's Talk:
Homecoming Talk for 3/22/15
We were called to serve in the Pennsylvania Philadelphia
Mission as MLS or member and leader support.
For our mission that basically meant that you were sent to an area that
needed Priesthood support—usually a branch or struggling ward and you worked
with the ward and with the Elders and Sisters who were serving in the area by
attending their meetings, helping them in teaching situations, taking them to
appointments and mission meetings and feeding them and being their grandparent
support. It is a wonderful calling with
the ability to become really close to all of the elders and sisters you get to
serve with. When we arrived in the
mission the couple who were coming to serve in the office were delayed by 6
weeks. Young elders had been serving for
about 6 months in the office and President was anxious to get them back our
into the field. So we were asked to step
in and help in the office for those 6 weeks.
We must have done OK because President eventually changed our call, asking
us to serve in the mission office. I did
records and commissary and then the finances.
Elder Jones was the service elders and over the 100 cars in the mission. He wore a phone at all times and it rang
LOTS. One day Corry mentioned to the
mission president that if he ever had some elders having a difficult time that
he would be happy to work with them as service elders. The very next day president took him up on
that offer. It was such a privilege for
me to see my husband use his talent as a counselor to serve in this
capacity. He thoroughly enjoyed it and
made some life long friendships. So
after about 5 months we both had the confirmation that we were serving where we
were supposed to serve, doing what we were supposed to be doing. We absolutely loved working in the mission
office. At our peak we were up to 270
missionaries. We were in a position to
meet them all at transfers or zone conferences or at the office. We served with a great mission president and
his wife, T. Gary Anderson and Pam from the Logan area.
Their mantra was to do all that they could to insure that the senior
missionaries had a good experience and they succeeded. We served along with some awesome senior couples
and we ended up organizing monthly socials to encourage fellowship among
us. We were able to even attend the
Palmyra Pageant.
The Pennsylvania Philadelphia Mission takes in the eastern
half of Pennsylvania , all of Delaware ,
the peninsula of Maryland
and 1/3 of New Jersey from Atlantic City south. Susquehanna is in this mission and the church
will complete the Aaronic Priesthood commemoration monument sometime this
summer. That place is as beautiful as
ever and our Elders do perform baptisms in this river. The Philadelphia
Temple is under construction right in
the downtown area of Philadelphia
and is scheduled for completion the summer of 2016. This is the first temple that the church has
actually sent a representative to facilitate this construction site. It has a small visitor center and Elder and
Sister Carr work hard to insure good will in the community and full utilization
of the temple site as a proselyting tool.
I think most everyone ends up loving where they are called to serve and
we are no exception. We loved this
mission and we loved the people the missionaries and the area. I especially liked Valley
Forge . It just has a
feeling of reverence as you travel through the park.
"Without
the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution of this great country,
there would not be enough freedom of religion for the restoration of the
Gospel. So without what happened in this mission no other mission would exist.
Also it was from this mission that the Battle of Trenton was begun and won. It
was the turning point of the Revolutionary War. Also in the mission is Valley Forge . Here during the winter of 1877-1878 the
United State Army was able to survive and live to continue fighting the British
and eventually win our independence. Without our independence the national
church, Church of England would not have allowed a new religion to begin. It
was in this mission at Harmony, Pennsylvania
Bishop
instructed us to talk in some way about “hastening the work”. Our mission is an I-pad mission and a
Facebook mission. These tools are
specifically used to do just that. We
had the opportunity to go teaching with the elders or sisters and we had the
fun of doing one series of lessons via Skype.
Because of the temple being constructed in Philly there is much emphasis
to all of the members to be actively engaged in missionary work. And they have also been instructed to be
anxiously engaged in family history work so that when the temple is finished
they will have a treasury of names to take there for ordinance work. I have a testimony that where a temple is
being constructed the Lord does prepare the people. This temple has been under construction for
about 2 years now. Locals are very
interested in its construction and the fact that it is taking a long time
because the construction must be of such high quality. Workmen have agreed not to smoke on the
temple site and to refrain from any bad language. Elder and Sister Carr bake homemade cookies
for the workmen weekly. Family history
work was very much stressed in our stake.
We had a very awesome chairman who worked hard to teach family
history. Many, many non-members use the
library and one man even helps man the library.
One of the reasons family history work is so stressed is that if a
recent convert can quickly get to the temple with some of his or her family
names they are much more likely to remain active. Anabel is a recent convert, as is John. They have both been twice to the temple with
family names since their baptism this past winter. A family history specialist works right after
baptism to help them successfully find one of their family names to take to the
temple for baptism.
Near the end of
our mission I was not busy enough one day so I decided to Family Search and
just see if I had any relatives who had ever lived somewhere in our mission. To my surprise I found several. My maternal 6th great grandfather
happened to lead the first settlement of Welshmen to land in Pennsylvania Wales Schuylkill river in Philly. I was able to find a letter that he wrote to
William Penn telling him all about his journey to America
and advising him what to bring with him to America
On our way home
we were able to stop and visit our daughter and her family in Vienna , VA.
In all of these
ways the Lord is hastening his work in this part of the United States
MY MISSION
HOMECOMING THOUGHTS
I look out over the congregation and I see my family, who
supported us on our mission with their prayers and thoughts.
I see many of our long time friends who have played such a
supporting role in our lives.
I see the ward members who are still active and have changed
somewhat and who remain as important people in our lives.
I see the missionaries that played such a wonder role in our
lives. I couldn’t hope for more than
this on this Sabbath day.
Having said all of that, I do hope that our main purpose for
coming today is to partake of the Sacrament, to renew our covenants, and to
rededicate our lives in remembering what our Savior has done for us. If not for that, then all of these
relationships we have fostered throughout our lives would end without hope.
Vehicle Coordinator:
1. Wrecked
their car, reported it, and told me they gave the other driver a pass a long
card, while they were filling out the accident reports. They obtained a appointment to meet and teach
him a lesson.
2. Lost
in a snow bank, got towed out, I didn’t know where they were, and their phone
was going in and out. Once safe to stay
and make sure the others got out.
3. Put
diesel fuel in their car. Liken it to
sin and repentance.
4. RR
tracks GPS led them poorly, liken it to
following the wrong directions
Service Coordinator
1. Testosterone
2. The
Johnson family, crying, working, fixing, and making it work.
3. The
family that had the fire
4. The
Liberians came with nothing.
5. Elder
Cowley’s medicine delivery
My most heart warming responsibility was visiting with
missionaries and to listen of their loves and desires to serve our Father in
Heaven and to preach of His Son. To
listen to their joys, their heartaches, their confusions, their frustrations
with not having prayers answered, trouble with companions, and most importantly
to hear about the tender mercies that they witnessed as people were touched by
the spirit and accepted the gospel in their lives.
Let me pause for a moment and give you some of my
suggestions for preparing young people to serve a mission.
When they are about 3 or 4 years of age, teach them how to
work, and continue that expectation throughout their life. Don’t buy everything for them, teach them to
work, earn and purchase things themselves.
Teach them how to clean their rooms, their clothes, make their beds and
to cook. Don’t do it for them. Help them to assume responsibilities of
driving a car, paying for the gas, checking the oil, and how to fix a flat
tire. Lastly teach them to develop a spiritual
relationship with the Godhead. Teach
them the gospel, read to them about the gospel, and show the proper example of
how the gospel has blessed your life.
You cannot wait for this to happen when they are 15-16 years of age.
Elder Packers thoughts
“I have long believed that the study of the doctrines of the
gospel will improve behavior quicker than talking about behavior will improve
behavior” Elder Boyd K. Packer
When I first heard this I was upset, why on earth couldn’t
he have said this earlier in my life. He
clearly didn’t understand I had spent 8 years getting a Master’s degree,
studying human behavior. He didn’t
understand that I have read 85 books on behavior, I have listened to audio
recordings, attended seminars, trying to understand why people do, what people
do. I have read about Personality types,
I have studied about Red, Blue, Yellow personality types. I have tried to understand parachutes, and
how that might give people peace of mind.
I have read about Yoga, meditation, I have tried diet plans, self help
books. Now don’t get me wrong, I have learned many things through my studies,
however I could have learned much more by applying the concept and principles of
the Plan Of Happiness. I started to
understand the role the Christ plays in our lives, I understand what affect
Satan has when we listen to his deceptions.
Faith: Do we really believe that Christ can do what
He promises to do. Can He take my pain
and suffering away, Can He replace it with peace. We have to come to the point that we have
developed sufficient faith that He can and place our burdens upon him.
Mosiah 4:
1-3 1 And now, it
came to pass that when king Benjamin had made an end of speaking the words
which had been delivered unto him by the angel of
the Lord, that he cast his eyes round about on the multitude, and behold they
had fallen to the earth, for the fear of
the Lord had come upon them.
2 And they had viewed themselves in their own carnal state, even less than the dust of the earth. And
they all cried aloud with one voice, saying: O have mercy, and apply the atoning blood of Christ that we may receive
forgiveness of our sins, and our hearts may be purified; for we believe in Jesus
Christ, the Son of God, who created heaven and earth, and all things; who
shall come down among the children of men.
3 And it came
to pass that after they had spoken these words the Spirit of the Lord came upon
them, and they were filled with joy, having received a remission of their sins, and having peace of conscience, because of the exceeding faith which they had in Jesus Christ who
should come, according to the words which king Benjamin had spoken unto
them.
The Lord has said: “I
am the Lord that healeth thee.” Ex. 15:
26
“I
have seen thy tears: behold I will heal
thee.” 2 Kings 20: 5
Scriptures testify of his healings
“He
healeth the broken in heart” Psalms 147: 3
“Healing
all manner of sickness” Matt. 4: 23
“Healed
the sick, cleansed the Leper: Matt. 10
Repentance: Can we
humble ourselves sufficiently to admit that we have errored, and need help to
restore our standing with our Heavenly Father.
We need to stop justifying our behavior and with a broken heart and
contrite spirit place our misdeeds upon someone that can do something about it.
29 And now, my son, I desire that ye should let these things trouble you no more, and only let your
sins trouble you, with that trouble which shall bring you down unto repentance.
30 O my son, I
desire that ye should deny the justice of God no more. Do not endeavor to
excuse yourself in the least point because of your sins, by denying the justice
of God; but do you let the justice of God, and his mercy, and his long-suffering have
full sway in your heart; and let it bring you down to the dust in humility.
Forgiveness: Do we
honestly believe that Christ has the ability to forgive us, and in turn can we
forgive others that in our minds have done us wrong. Knowing that if we don’t forgive others, then
how do we believe we can receive forgiveness?
Matt. 6: 12, 14-15
12 And forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors.
14 For if ye forgive men their trespasses, your heavenly
Father will also forgive you:
15 But if ye forgive
not men their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses.
Then we must commit to be obedient, diligent, and that we
will endure until the end.
Elder Packer on another occasion has said.
“It is
contrary to the order of heaven for any soul to be locked into compulsive,
immoral behavior with no way out?
It is
consistent with the workings of the adversary to deceive you into believing
that you are.
I
gratefully acknowledge that transgressions, even those which affect little
children yield to sincere repentance. I
testify with all my soul that the doctrine of repentance is true and has a
miraculous liberating effect upon behavior.
To you
innocent ones who have not transgressed, but were abused as little children and
still carry an undeserved burden of guilt, I say:
Learn true
doctrine---repentance and forgiveness, lay that burden of guilt down.
Faith,
Repentance, Forgiveness, Obedience, Diligence, Endurance = the peace and joy
promised.
“I have given you an example, that ye should do as I have
done:” John 13:15
Come follow Me, do as I do, walk where I walk, serve as I
have served
The Mission Song:
"We'll Bring This Mission His Truth"
1. We have been called to Pennsylvania ,
To New Jersey , Delaware , Maryland ,
too.
Thrusting our sickles and preaching the
word;
We won't go home until everyone’s heard.
CHORUS: We are as the army of Helaman.
We have been taught in our youth.
And we are now the Lord's missionaries
To bring this mission His truth.
2. We have been called to Phil-a-del-phia,
Where we will thrust with our might, mind,
and strength.
Planning and finding and teaching all day;
The Holy Ghost will tell us what to say.
REPEAT CHORUS
3. We have been called to Phil-a-del-phia;
Baptizing, binding we do both so well.
Knocking on doors’ til it’s quarter to nine;
Stretching and jumping, it's line upon line.
REPEAT CHORUS
We’ll bring this mission His truth.
