Blue + yellow = green.
Blue=initial reaction to trials
Yellow=God’s response to prayers
Green=courage and determination enhanced as a result of prayer
The formula is clear in Alma 58:9-13. Just read the highlighted words and apply them to a challenge that you are facing. This formula has worked for me my whole life.
Before Mark was set apart as a missionary, he wanted one last gathering with his Sanchez cousins who are his age, so we invited them to spend part of conference weekend here. MMSK is pronounced “misk,” and it’s an acronym of their names. Mostly, there was a lot of nonsense going on as they “watched conference”, but I think that the time together was important.
Mark and Richard attended a session of General Conference on Sunday. They brought the binoculars, which was a great idea.
When Mark sent in his mission papers last spring, I assumed he would be on a mission long before now. We’ve had a long preparation period, which was good in many ways and challenging in others.
We had time for more spiritual preparation and temple worship. Mark received mentoring in Preach My Gospel and got some work experience from his Sanchez grandparents. We had time to travel this summer.
The long wait means that the bandaid is being removed very slowly. I am pretty fragile lately.
Now that Mark has had a few days of home MTC, he is excited to go to the Provo MTC next week. Everything is as it should be: the wait, the anticipation, the emotions accompanying a goodbye, the excitement, his assignment. Everything.
I think that my current anxieties about getting the right clothing for Mark’s mission are because I know that these are some of the last tangible things that I can do for him. We are moving into a different phase where my help shifts almost completely to intangibles. I am crying every day, as one does at such a time.
He has clothing for Arctic temperatures and rain and a lifetime of other preparation. We now have just a few minor things to purchase.
All I need to do is look outside to see my annual “missionary sunflowers” (which first showed up when Daniel left on his mission) for a reminder that God is taking care of everything for Mark. And He allows me to do the very motherly thing to shop for the right coat.
On Mark’s ninth birthday I took him to the Payson temple open house. Later, this was the first temple that Mark entered to do baptisms for the dead. Through these experiences and more, this became his favorite temple, and recently, he received his endowment there.
In the Payson temple there is a fruit motif in the interior design, as it was built on land that was previously an apple orchard. As you ascend within building, the blossoms in the motif change to fruits.
As I reflect on raising Mark, I see that small, sacred things like attending a temple open house have yielded very sweet fruit.
In his life.
In mine.
And for our ancestors.
I drove through a heavy rainstorm on Saturday to attend a niece’s temple endowment. I was flustered by my commute and ran from my car to the unfamiliar temple in the rain.
I was greeted in the usual way by young and old temple workers, ushered through new halls, and given spiritual assurances that my visit was important.
You’d think that after years of temple attendance that these things wouldn’t surprise me, but that is the way with joyful things.
“Surprise!” Joy cries, as it jumps out from a hiding place such as a rainy day or a challenging relationship.
There was a time when I didn’t think I would ever see this niece again because of family difficulties, but I was invited to be with her on her important day. Poised and happy, she greeted me in the celestial room with a hug.
Later, when I walked outside, the clouds were gone and the brilliant afternoon sunlight descended like a confirmation.
Surprise!
I saw this image from the upcoming release of the film about Helaman’s army and it really affected me. This story from the Book of Mormon has found new pockets of meaning throughout the years of my motherhood. Even in these final months with a child at home, this story has fed my courage and resolve to be a valiant mother.
In family life, I have needed to be creative and determined in order to teach the gospel. Even now, as the last child moves outside my orbit, I am trying new methods, hoping to reach him in more effective ways.
Over the years I have learned to be more vulnerable and brief in my teaching, distilling my words to bring the most impact. No lecturing, no ranting, just direct, clear ideas are the goal.
I want my faith to be clear to them because their battles are real.
A friend called me this week to talk about the Come Follow Me reading assignment. We talked about deliverance, one of the big themes in the book of Mosiah. I also came across this short clip about being rescued. It’s too good to keep to myself.
We finished a very intense ward conference season on Sunday and I feel a mixture of emotions. As stake Primary president, I have had speaking assignments, teaching opportunities, and ministering visits which have taken my energy and some of my health (cold and flu season stuff), but I miraculously rallied each weekend thanks to the prayers of good friends.
I have felt the love of God for his children, and Primary children in every ward were well behaved and anxious to participate. I have seen a leap in their knowledge and understanding during the past few years because families are teaching them from the scriptures at home. The Come Follow Me program has amazing results!
The passing of my first counselor Anne’s husband in the midst of these conferences has been a source of deep sadness. These words from the Book of Mormon are true of my inspired and faithful presidency, “But behold, they have received many wounds; nevertheless, they stand fast.” (Alma 58:40)
Here are some words from the song that I taught in each Primary that summarize my thoughts, “I know He lives, I will follow faithfully, my heart I give to him, I know that my Savior loves me.”
I am remembering the anniversary of my grandmother’s passing, Rebecca’s passing, and now my counselor’s husband’s passing. My friend shared a quote with me and I have reflected on it a lot this week. President Nelson said this at his daughter’s funeral, directed to her children. So, this is not something he shared at General Conference. I find it very comforting and it affirms my faith that familiar angels minister to us.
“She can minister to you in what I call ‘parenting through the veil.’ She can see us more clearly than we can see her. We cannot forget her. We do not cease to love her. We are sealed to her by eternal ties. She loves us now more than ever. Her desire for our well-being will be even greater than that which we feel for ourselves. So, dear family, stay tuned.”
Russell M. Nelson
This is one passage that I enjoyed in this lovely book,
The only sheep I kept at the ranch house were “the bums,” as orphan lambs were called in sheep parlance. They needed special care and I needed them. At the homestead they had been given their bottles of heated milk before we left the cabin, and then they followed the bunch, never very far ahead of me, however. I am sure they looked on me as just another old ewe. They were an engaging and endearing group, gamboling along the trail, playing and jumping, appreciative to a degree, the gentlest of all pets, for that is what they grew into…
As grown ewes, the former “bums” never seemed to forget the care they had received and were often leaders, cooperative and usually obedient.
Margaret Duncan Brown
Sheep are generally prone to fear and panic. Like us, they follow the wrong paths easily. No wonder the Lord is called the Good Shepherd, because he knows where to seek his sheep. No one can find rest without his special care, and those who rely upon him most come to know him best.
The Good Shepherd never gives up on us. Will we have eyes to see his efforts to help?
I will seek that which was lost, and bring again that which was driven away, and will bind up that which was broken, and will strengthen that which was sick…
Ezekiel 33:16