March 8, 2010
This past Saturday I attended a Priesthood Leadership Conference held at the Brampton Ontario Stake Centre (beside the Toronto Temple). It was presided over by Elder M. Russell Ballard of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles. Elder L. Whitney Clayton of the Presidency of the Seventy traveled with him. Our Area Authority, W. T. David Murray was also there. The whole meeting lasted 4 1/2 hours (including a 1/2 lunch break). Even though an apostle was going to be there, I have to admit the thought of driving an hour and a half to go to another meeting wasn’t very appealing. It turned out to be a fantastic meeting. I am so glad I went.
Here are a few random notes:
- Elder Ballard sounded good, and looked about the same as he does in General Conference
- The technology setup was neat. When I heard this was going to be for all of Eastern Canada, I assumed it would be done via satellite, but it was done via a webcast. Through the whole meeting there was a screen up that showed people in Ottawa, Sudbury, Montreal, and in a few places in the Maritime provinces.
- Rather than having them up at the pulpit, the first couple rows of pews were removed and a stage was setup. There was a long table with three chairs setup at the front of the room where they sat. It gave a more intimate feeling to the meeting. I was in the third row, about 20 feet away.
- Throughout the meeting, you certainly could feel the humility of each of the men
- Elder Ballard wore a Canada flag pin
- Elder Ballard spoke of several problems, and each time told us to “Fix it!”
- As a side note, after sitting through 4 hours of meetings, it occurred to me that pornography wasn’t mentioned once
We were never asked not to share our notes, so I’ll share a few highlights , but not everything (I had 6 pages of notes!)
—————–
Elder Clayton showed us this picture and we discussed what we saw.
The picture shows a pearl in a nice box. We discussed what the pearl and the box might be. Some people said it could be a man. The pearl is the heart. Others said it could be the Church (box) and the doctrine (the pearl). Elder Clayton then read from a talk by President Packer at the dedication of the Conference Center. President Packer shared a parable:
A merchant man seeking precious jewels found at last the perfect pearl. He had the finest craftsman carve a superb jewel box and line it with blue velvet. He put his pearl of great price on display so others could share his treasure. He watched as people came to see it. Soon he turned away in sorrow. It was the box they admired, not the pearl.
Boyd K. Packer, “The Cloven Tongues of Fire,” Ensign, May 2000, 7
Of course there is no right or wrong answer, but the point they were trying to make is that the pearl is the one thing that you need to do, whatever that may be. Don’t be distracted by the other things. We need to focus on the important thing(s).
—————–
Elder Ballard told us about some training that President Monson had done with all of the General Authorities. He spoke on the topic of “The Rescue”. He showed us this picture:
This is a painting by Joseph Mallord William Turner. It shows a boat in danger off in the distance, and they’ve set off a flare. There is another boat going out to rescue them. There are also people on the shore. Regardless of what the artist was showing, there are some clear gospel parallels. There are people in desperate need that we need to rescue. Sometimes it is hard or even dangerous, but there are people counting on us.
—————–
Elder Ballard said he and President Monson have known each other since 1951. President Monson used to work for Deseret News and Elder Ballard worked at his father’s car lot. President Monson used to come around and pick up the classified ads.
—————–
Elder Murray (I think it was him) shared the store of Clinton T. Duffy. I believe this was from a talk called Judge Righteously by Bishop Keith McMullin, Second Counselor in the Presiding Bishopric at LDS Business College Devotional on September 15, 2009.
“…famed prison warden Clinton T. Duffy, who became the warden at California’s San Quentin Prison in 1940. When he was appointed, he began one of the most dramatic housecleaning jobs in penal history. He fired the brutish captain of guards and six of his lieutenants. He closed up a dungeon of airless, lightless, unfurnished, iron-door [clad] stone cells into which convicts were thrown as punishment for even the most trivial offenses. At the time he became warden, men were being fed from buckets. He installed a cafeteria and hired a dietitian. To the horror of his staff, he strolled, unarmed, into the prison yard and chatted with convicts. To their infinite surprise, he strolled out again. He established a broad program of vocational training. He was the first warden to let prisoners listen to radios in their cells. He encouraged athletics, inaugurated a prison newspaper to which he contributed a regular column and established the first prison chapter of Alcoholics Anonymous. In cleaning up San Quentin, he became one of the best-known, most admired prison administrators in U.S. penal history. But the most eloquent acclaim came from inside the walls, from the prisoners themselves, who truly respected him.
“A critic who knew of Warden Duffy’s efforts to rehabilitate the men said to him, ‘Don’t you know that leopards can’t change their spots?’
Responded Warden Duffy, ‘You should know that I don’t work with leopards. I work with men, and men change every day.’”
Great line there at the end!
—————–
As part of his concluding testimony, Elder Ballard shared “The Oak Tree” poem by Johnny Ray Ryder Jr:
A mighty wind blew night and day
It stole the oak tree’s leaves away
Then snapped its boughs and pulled its bark
Until the oak was tired and stark
But still the oak tree held its ground
While other trees fell all around
The weary wind gave up and spoke.
How can you still be standing Oak?
The oak tree said, I know that you
Can break each branch of mine in two
Carry every leaf away
Shake my limbs, and make me sway
But I have roots stretched in the earth
Growing stronger since my birth
You’ll never touch them, for you see
They are the deepest part of me
Until today, I wasn’t sure
Of just how much I could endure
But now I’ve found, with thanks to you
I’m stronger than I ever knew
Posted in Mormon Church Hierarchy, Mormon Church Meetings 
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February 26, 2010
The GOOD web site (“a collaboration of individuals, businesses, and nonprofits pushing the world forward) had a posting the other day about America’s Wealthiest Religions.
I’m not sure where they got their information from, and I’m not totally clear on what exactly the point of it is, but they have an interesting chart that compares a church’s income distribution with that of the national average. Jehovah’s Witnesses and Historic Black Churches seem to be the “poorest”. The Mormons seem to be fairly close to the national average.
Posted in General Religion and Spirituality No Comments »
February 13, 2010
The New York Times has a nice article about the Church’s “Historic Kirtland”. It quotes some locals, as well as people from both the LDS and CoC churches.
Tim Powell remembers when the “Utah Mormons” first came to town with their plans in the early 1990s.
The Mormon faith’s first temple has stood for 174 years in Kirtland, Ohio, the site of the church’s headquarters in the 1830s.
They wanted to recreate a historic village that would explain the role this city played as the Mormon Church’s headquarters in the 1830s and celebrate the fact that the faith’s first temple is here…
Mr. Powell, who has lived in Kirtland all his life and been on the City Council for 14 years, and some others did not like the idea. He had read how Mormons had swept into two other towns that played significant roles in the church’s founding — Palmyra, N.Y., and Nauvoo, Ill. — resulting in conflicts with non-Mormons.
“In other places you could see the Mormons were taking over those towns,” said Mr. Powell, 55.
Mr. Powell fought the church’s project every step of the way, worried, he said, about allowing such a relatively large tourist development in the middle of town.
But now, eight years after it was completed, Mr. Powell concedes that he was wrong. “I was a skeptic,” he said. “But now that the dust has settled, I think people are pretty happy with it.”
I’ve never been to Nauvoo, but if I had to choose between Palmyra and Kirtland, I’d choose Kirtland in a second. I love going through the temple, and walking around the “Historic Kirtland” area. I also love the quarry. I know what you see isn’t from the same time frame, but you can still get a pretty good idea of what they had to do to get stone for the temple.
Posted in Mormon Church History 1 Comment »
November 27, 2009
I’m an IT guy, and the other day at work I was looking through some bounced messages, and came across one that was sent to someone who know longer works at the company. The subject line was “LDS Singles”, and this is the body of the message:
Weird! I don’t know if it is common in other places, but I’ve never seen this before. I’ve looked through thousands (maybe tens of thousands) of bounces over the years, and never seen a Mormon-related junk mail. Apparently spammers send spam, because it works… so is there interest in LDS singles?
Posted in Mormon Church on the Web (Unofficial) No Comments »
November 25, 2009
We have a Ward Temple Night on the 3rd Thursday of each month. We are in the Toronto Ontario Temple district. In November, this was last Thursday. It was rainy and kind of foggy/misty, and this is what we saw (taken with my cell phone camera) as we approached the temple.
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October 31, 2009
Last year I came across a web site that showed a picture of Gordon B Hinckley carved into a pumpkin. This year, I’ve come across someone else who has done one of Thomas S Monson. Below is just a thumbnail. Click on through to Jay Ball’s web site to see a larger version.
Posted in Mormon Church Hierarchy, Random Mormon-related things No Comments »
October 20, 2009
The Church News has a nice article (with pictures) about a recent trip by President Monson to Nauvoo and Kirtland. I have never been to Nauvoo, but have been to Kirtland many times. It’s about a 3-4 hour drive from here. I love being there. I don’t generally talk like this, but there really is a special feeling being in the same place that the early Church leaders were in. In my mind’s eye I can see them working on the temple, living in the houses, and playing in the fields. It just makes everything seem more real.
The article is quite detailed, but starts off this way:
President Thomas S. Monson made brief visits to Nauvoo, Ill., and Kirtland, Ohio, on Oct. 9 and 10. It was the first time since he became president of the Church on Feb. 3, 2008, that he has visited the sites steeped in Church history.
Posted in General Religion and Spirituality No Comments »
October 4, 2009
Well, another General Conference has come and gone. There were no “Wow!” talks for me this year. This isn’t to say that they were boring or that they wouldn’t have affected anyone. There are definitely things that I will work harder on now. I’ve made my notes (obviously), and we’ll have lots to choose from for the 4th Sunday lessons.
I loved Elder Ballard’s talk during the Priesthood Session (suggestions for sons and fathers to get along better). As always, I also enjoyed the Mormon Tabernacle Choir. Come, Thou Fount of Every Blessing was beautiful, as was O, Divine Redeemer.
One last time I’ll comment on how great the Move Networks player is. Perfect! It just amazes me that I can sit in my living room and watch General Conference in something close to HD on my living room TV. This might be normal for many parts of the United States, but not here.
It was neat hearing Sister Dibb mention our city by name. I drive by or over the Garden City Skyway almost every day. It is kind of neat to think that I’m the bishop of the ward whose city was mentioned by name in General Conference.
Watching/participating in General Conference reaffirms my testimony. I love the Church, and love its teachings and principles. It is true!
Read the recaps and other notes from the 179th Semiannual General Conference of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints:
Posted in Mormon Church Doctrine and Teachings, Mormon Church Hierarchy, Mormon General Conference No Comments »
October 4, 2009
We watched the last session of conference at home again. As before, the transmission was perfect. My parents came over to watch with us, and we then had dinner together.
President Dieter F Uchtdorf conducted
The choir sang “In Hymns of Praise”
Elder Marlin K Jenseon offered the invocation
The choir sang “O, Divine Redeemer”. Beautiful!
Elder Jeffrey R Holland ** might use as a 4th Sunday lesson **
- Even those in the covenant could be deceived by the enemy of truth
- The rod marks the way of that redeeming trail
- “As one of a thousands elements of my testimony…”
- In Joseph’s and Hyrum’s last hours, they marked a scripture in the Book of Mormon as their testimony
- “I lie not!”
- Shared his testimony by oath and his office of the Book of Mormon
- These are the words of Christ and they teach all men to do good
- God always provides safety for the soul
Elder Quentin L Cook ** might use as a 4th Sunday lesson **
- We live in perilous times where people feel they are not accountable to God
- We do welfare work because we are doing what we believe God wants us to do
- We try to do what is right because we love and want to please our Father in Heaven, not because someone is forcing us to obey
- It is our responsibility to teach the Saviour’s standard of morality
- “What happens in Sevier County, you can share with your friends”
- See that all these things are done in wisdom and order
- In all of our stewardship efforts we follow Jesus Christ
- Review our stewardships and know we are accountable to God
Elder Brent H. Nielson ** might use as a 4th Sunday lesson **
- Go ye into all the earth and teach all nations
- Lengthen our stride and widen our vision
- Every young man should serve an honourable full-time mission
- Who are the labourers? They are prophets and apostles, stake presidents, bishops, parents, aunts, uncles, brothers and sisters
- We have just begun to scratch the surface
- The need has never been greater, the field has never been whiter
The choir and congregation sang “Hope of Israel”
Elder Dale G Renlund ** might use as a 4th Sunday lesson **
- If you feel good, all is NOT well
- The ultimate operation is a spiritual change of heart
- Our transgressions lead to our hearts that are hardened and diseased
- Do not become casual with prayer and scripture study
- Do not compromise our covenants or commitments
Elder Michael T Ringwood
- Pray till you have faith
- We need to allow the words to sink deep into our hearts
- At some times, it is easier to believe the word of God
- The teachings of this conference, if followed, will lead to an easiness in believing the good word of God
Elder Joseph W Sitati
- The Church has become a global faith
- Now, more than at any other time, we can more fully understand the gospel
Elder D Todd Christoffersen
- We need moral discipline
- The gospel of Jesus Christ provides moral certainty
- Self-discipline has eroded
- The lack of internal control in people, breeds external controls by governments
- Moral discipline is learned at home
President Thomas S Monson
- Study the addresses in the Ensign
- We often find ourselves swimming against the current
- We can survive this
- We will be blessed as we do what is right
- “I invoke the blessings of heaven upon each of you”
- Leave this conference a better person
The choir sang “Lord, Dismiss Us With Thy Blessing”
The benediction was offered by W Douglas Shumway (released yesterday)
Read the recaps and other notes from the 179th Semiannual General Conference of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints:
Posted in Mormon Church Doctrine and Teachings, Mormon Church Hierarchy, Mormon General Conference No Comments »
October 4, 2009
It was so nice to sleep in this morning and then actually be able to help my wife with the kids. As we were driving to church today she said it was weird to be going together as a family. We also brought a YSA who lives with us (I saw her taking notes during the session) and an investigator.
We got to church for the last part of the Tabernacle Choir broadcast, just in time for Come, Thou Fount of Every Blessing. A truly beautiful hymn!
The choir sang sing “Praise to Him Who Reigns Above”
President Thomas S Monson conducted
The choir sang “I Need Thee Every Hour”
The invocation was offered by Elder Glen L Pace
The choir sang “Beautiful Zion, Built Above”
President Henry B Eyring ** might use this as a 4th Sunday lesson **
- We have a desire to be better than we are
- By living the gospel we can become like the Saviour
- “I’m trying to be like Jesus”
- The greatest joys and sorrows come in the family
- Pray for the love that let’s you see the good in your companion
- Persist in love
- Pray for your children. Love them and reach out to them
- Honour thy father and thy mother
- The only one of the 10 commandments with a promise
- Look for opportunities to do what He did
Elder L Tom Perry
- The pioneers left us a great heritage
- Reviewing the lessons of the past help us face the challenges of the future
- The missionaries teach about the Restoration, the Plan of Salvation, the Gospel of Jesus Christ
Bishop H David Burton
- Let virtue garnish thy thoughts unceasingly, then shall thy confidence wax strong in the Lord
- Virtue traits form the foundation of a Christ-like life
- “Ity” virtues (charity, chastity, morality, etc)
- We need not be part of the virtue malaise
- Integrity is more important than revenge
The choir and congregation sang “How Firm a Foundation”
Sister Ann M Dibb
- Shared a story about St Catharines, Ontario, Canada and the Garden City Skyway… I live in St Catharines! I’m the bishop of the St Catharines ward. There was quite a buzz in the chapel when she mentioned our city.
- Workers fell because they didn’t have safety equipment
- The iron rod brings us safety
- If we are on strange roads, it is always possible for us to find our way back
Elder Russell M Nelson
- Even more amazing than modern technology is the ability to get information directly from heaven without any special hardware or monthly service plan
- Personal revelation can be honed
- Develop faith, hope, charity, and love
The choir sang “Love is Spoken Here”
President Thomas S Monson
- What did you do for someone today?
- When you are in the service of your fellow being, you are serving God
- Members responded to his request to serve others as a gift for his birthday last year
The choir sang “Have I Done Any Good?”
The benediction was offered by Enrique R Falabella
Read the recaps and other notes from the 179th Semiannual General Conference of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints:
Posted in Mormon Church Doctrine and Teachings, Mormon Church Hierarchy, Mormon General Conference No Comments »
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