Hearts of the Children …

I wanted to look up the option for printing a family tree fan. Totally cool! This is the simple one from FamilySearch.org. Simple.Screen Shot 2013-06-30 at 9.16.05 PM“Remember that the names which will be so difficult to find are of real people to whom you owe your existence in this world and whom you will meet again in the spirit world. When you were baptized, your ancestors looked down on you with hope. Perhaps after centuries, they rejoiced to see one of their descendants make a covenant to find them and to offer them freedom. In your reunion, you will see in their eyes either gratitude or terrible disappointment. Their hearts are bound to you. Their hope is in your hands. You will have more than your own strength as you choose to labor on to find them.” —Henry B. Eyring, “Hearts Bound Together,” Ensign, May 2005

This is Jimmy’s simple family tree fan. This shows his grandmother’s biological line.
Screen Shot 2013-06-30 at 9.16.22 PM

This one shows his grandmother’s adopted line. I’m not sure why they are different. I thought these were both feeding from the same information. Sounds like a mystery that needs to be solved.Screen Shot 2013-06-30 at 11.25.15 PM

Miss Hannah told me she LOVES family history stuff. She loves seeing all the names and pictures and knowing about the people. I’m excited to figure out what we’re doing and get our family going with this. It may take a few years to figure it out and get the kids involved.

The 6th ward did the neatest youth conference. They set a goal for the youth to research and take 250 family names to the temple for baptisms. They learned how to research from a sister in the ward who works at the family history library in SLC. Some of the youth were completely caught up in the family history work. So neat! I saw their goal and thought they had aimed waaaaay too high. Little did I know (doubting Heather!) that they would exceed their goal by almost 20 names. The youth picked 4 temples to go to over a period of a few days and they did the baptisms. Super way to teach the youth!

I think Hannah will find this word cloud interesting. These names come from Smith & Price lines. The larger the word, the more common it is on the family tree.cloud “Do you young people want a sure way to eliminate the influence of the adversary in your life? Immerse yourself in searching for your ancestors, prepare their names for the sacred vicarious ordinances available in the temple, and then go to the temple to stand as proxy for them to receive the ordinances of baptism and the gift of the Holy Ghost. As you grow older, you will be able to participate in receiving the other ordinances as well. I can think of no greater protection from the influence of the adversary in your life.” – Elder Scott Oct 2012, The Joy of Redeeming the Dead

I love this stuff. It inspires my heart. Now, I just need to figure out what I’m doing and how to research. Once we get our chart linked together appropriately, I want to print both Smith & Price lines on a huge fan to hang in the home. Hearts of the children turn to their fathers!

Happy & Holy

Saw this image on a general conference video and you just can’t help but feel happy with him. He was talking about Spencer W. Kimball, “Give me this mountain. Give me these challenges.” There is JOY in the gospel… even in challenges. This I must remember.Screen Shot 2013-06-16 at 3.08.10 PM

Jimmy and I went to ward temple night yesterday to do sealings at the Jordan River Temple. As we sat in the sealing session, I thought about how blessed we are to have such a peaceful, holy building to attend. How many people in the world have the opportunity to feel that special spirit in the temple? How many people would be so uplifted and blessed if they would adjust their life to be able to spend more time in the temple? We are so blessed to have this Holy House of God.
JSA_0666And8more-Edit

Security & Freedom

The hot topic lately is Security vs Privacy… related to National Security Agency spying programs. This perspective difference is interesting.ben franklin liberty security

“I think the American people understand that there are some trade-offs involved,” Obama said. “It’s important to recognize that you can’t have 100 percent security and also then have 100 percent privacy and zero inconvenience,” he said. “We’re going to have to make some choices as a society.”

I’m going to go with… FREEDOM & LIBERTY. Thank you Ben Franklin.

Gifted Hands

gifted-hands-movieA few weeks ago we watched this movie ‘Gifted Hands’ about the life of Ben Carson, a world-renowned pediatric neurosurgeon at John Hopkins. Such an interesting story.

He grew up in poverty with a single mother who didn’t know how to read. The thing I loved about her is that she was always encouraging her boys… trying to help them see their potential.

These are a few quotes I found that seemed to explain his perspective on life.

“We did live in dire poverty. And one of the things that I hated was poverty. Some people hate spiders. Some people hate snakes. I hated poverty. I couldn’t stand it. My mother couldn’t stand the fact that we were doing poorly in school, and she prayed and she asked God to give her wisdom. What could she do to get her young sons to understand the importance of developing their minds so that they control their own lives? God gave her the wisdom. At least in her opinion. My brother and I didn’t think it was that wise. Turn off the TV, let us watch only two or three TV programs during the week. And with all that spare time read two books a piece from the Detroit Public Libraries and submit to her written book reports, which she couldn’t read but we didn’t know that. I just hated this. My friends were out having a good time. Her friends would criticize her. My mother didn’t care. But after a while I actually began to enjoy reading those books. Because we were very poor, but between the covers of those books I could go anywhere. I could be anybody. I could do anything. I began to read about people of great accomplishment. And as I read those stories, I began to see a connecting thread. I began to see that the person who has the most to do with you, and what happens to you in life, is you. You make decisions. You decide how much energy you want to put behind that decision. And I came to understand that I had control of my own destiny. And at that point I didn’t hate poverty anymore, because I knew it was only temporary. I knew I could change that. It was incredibly liberating for me. Made all the difference.”
― Ben Carson

“If you hear how wonderful you are often enough, you begin to believe it, no matter how you try to resist it.”
― Ben Carson

“Do your best and let God do the rest.”
― Ben Carson

“Success is determined not by whether or not you face obstacles, but by your reaction to them. And if you look at these obstacles as a containing fence, they become your excuse for failure. If you look at them as a hurdle, each one strengthens you for the next.”
― Ben Carson, Gifted Hands: The Ben Carson Story

“Successful people don’t have fewer problems. They have determined that nothing will stop them from going forward.”
― Ben Carson, Gifted Hands: The Ben Carson Story

“If we would spend on education half the amount of money that we currently lavish on sports and entertainment, we could provide complete and free education for every student in this country.”
― Ben Carson, Think Big: Unleashing Your Potential for Excellence

Temple Blessings

The temple was grand today. I drove the slightly more peaceful drive to Oquirrh Mountain temple instead of Mt. Timp. The flowers were lovely.
IMG_20130511_102849-webThe temple workers were cheerful. I had such sweet and sincere sisters serving in the initiatory. They made me giggle inside because of their sparkle. It is so quiet in the temple. It is so different than my home with 5 noisy children. I had to pry my eyes open with tooth picks to stay awake. I wanted to just curl up on a couch and sleep for a few hours. Think of all the glorious temple spirit I would absorb. But alas… I didn’t sleep. But I did enjoy the stillness.IMG_20130511_103011-webWhile I was waiting for my turn, I opened up the Bible to read for a bit. The page I opened up to was Psalms 138. It spoke to me.psalms 138I’m so grateful for the Holy Spirit that connects with our spirit to comfort and teaches. I love doing initiatories because it reminds me of all the blessings I have been annointed with. We are so blessed. This is a reason to rejoice… the knowledge that God blesses us and watches over in very specific ways. This strengthens me to know that with God, I can do all things.

Face toward Zion

For a moment today
I focused on my fears in this journey …
rather than faith & hope.
My dear friend who is a great example
of double-knotting her bonnet,
reminded me that following
Heavenly Father’s plan in Faith
is always the best path.

I love that encouragement.
face toward zion

p.s. Great talk on HOPE by Steven Snow
“Our hope in the Atonement empowers us with eternal perspective.’

“We should never let hope be displaced by despair. The Apostle Paul wrote that we “should plow in hope” (1 Corinthians 9:10). The exercise of hope enriches our lives and helps us look forward to the future. Whether we are plowing fields to plant or plowing through life, it is imperative we, as Latter-day Saints, have hope.”

“The spiritual journeys of today require no less hope or faith than those of the early pioneers. Our challenges may be different, but the struggles are just as great.”

Our Daily Contributions

stand as a witness of god

VIRTUE IS THE STRENGTH AND POWER

our daily contribution
Was in need of some spiritual uplift.
Today was long.
I am weary.

Virtue is good.
Colors are cheerful.
So is Sister Dalton.

The hard is what makes it great.
right?
i hope so.

I am a daughter of Heavenly Father… who loves me.
And that should make up the difference.

p.s. ummmm, yah… that might not have made sense.
but my brain is fuzzy …
and I can’t do much more than 3 word sentences or garbled grammar.

Prayer

I heard Dallyn Bayles sing this at my friend Emily’s Women’s Conference Talk
(ok, Brad Wilcox was there too and asked him to sing it).
But honestly… IT . WAS . BEAUTIFUL .

Brad Wilcox compared this prayer
to something our Savior might sing for us…
“God on high
Hear my prayer…
He is young
He’s afraid
Let him rest
Heaven blessed…
Bring him home
Bring him peace
Bring him joy
He is young
He is only a boy…
If I die, let me die
Let him live
Bring him home”

A Temple in Sight

ne13apr49-000-always-have-the-temple-in-your-sightsOh how I love this poster from the back page of the April 2013 New Era. I want a huge print of it in my home. What a perfect message for all of us.

Look for the helpers

Boston Marathon Bombs today.
Tragic.
The kids saw a wee bit of the news.
I like this perspective that Fred Rogers shared:
558914_10152749131300714_2045457020_n

I know this won’t be the last tragedy we have to talk with our kids about.
But putting this perspective on it is good and calming.

Today I heard about a man handing flags out at the finish line to all National Guard runners.
His son was killed in battle in Iraq, I believe.
He was one of the first to jump in and help others.
He looked outward when he could have looked inward in memory of his pain.

Look for the helpers. You will always find people who are helping.

We’re praying for those whose lives were altered today.