170 Years of Relief Society--What Does it Mean to You?

It has been 170 years since a small group of women met, with the Prophet Joseph on a historic day that would shape the lives of millions of women to come.  Do you ever step back and think of what it really means to you to be a part of the Relief Society?  

You are a member of the largest Women’s organization on earth, and one with more power to do good than any other that has ever existed, because we are organized under the power of the Priesthood, the Power of God on earth. 

Actual notes and minutes of the very 1st Relief Society Meeting.

If you have a few quiet minutes to think about that today, maybe even take out your journal and right down your feelings, I think that you, like me, might be taking something very wonderful just a bit for granted.

If you have a few minutes today, this week, this month, there is a great site, all about the Relief Society--it has all kinds of things like bio's on each of the past general presidents, minutes from many of the beginning meetings, and many of the major projects the Relief Society has accomplished over the years.

HEre is the link:  http://www.ldswomenofgod.com/blog/

OH, And by the way, we will be celebrating the Relief Society's Birthday on 

MARCH 22nd, 

a Thursday, 

at 6:30

 in the cultural hall!  

We will have a few sign-ups for anyone interested in helping with food, but other than that, it is a come and enjoy, bring a friend, have a nice evening celebrating this great organization of sisterhood that we have been blessed with!!

Feb 2012 PRESIDENCY MESSAGE

(Our Focus this month in Relief Society is: CHARITY IS THE BASIS FOR A CELESTIAL MARRIAGE ) 

Dear Sisters, 
February offers another opportunity for us to express our love for those dear to us. Many complain that it is just another holiday to sell greeting cards, flowers and chocolates. Any gift given at any time is appreciated, especially if the motives are pure. 
Our Savior spent his whole life giving love to everyone. “He healed the sick he raised the dead. . . . He cared for their spiritual well-being, but He also cared for their temporal needs as well. . . . Why did he do all those things? He had only one motive -- love. This motive means everything.” 
“We can do things with less-than laudable motives. Quoting his father, Mormon, Moroni wrote that if we give ‘a gift, (and) doeth it grudgingly; . . . it is counted . . . the same as if we had retained the gift; wherefore we are counted evil before God’. (Moroni 7:8,9).” 
“Why we do things is probably more important than what we do. . . . While it’s important to remember that we should not judge another’s motive, we can judge our own. We need to look inside and take stock. Are we doing what we do out of love? Or has some other motive taken over?” 
When we find ourselves needing to talk to our spouse or another member of the family, perhaps we could remind ourselves, “How can I say what I need to say in the most loving way possible?” The few extra seconds it may take could make a big difference in that relationship. 
“When others’ needs start to matter more than our own, and when others’ successes are more exciting to us than our own, we are beginning to experience the kind of love that our Father in Heaven and our Savior have for us. It is a love without dimension. It has no boundaries, no limitations. It is pure, infinite, and eternal.” (Quotes from Russell T. Osguthorpe)
Love, 
Jamie, Cindy, Loree, & Kathy 

This month....

This month is half over and yet I am just barely getting the blog updated.  BIG SIGH.  Oh, the good intentions that I have, that just don't always come to fruition!!  So, it is now updated almost all the way. 

I just wanted to thank Sister Lester for her work on our activity last week, we really had a great time, though our numbers were few, the food was great and we were able to gain new recipes and ideas to take home.  We definitely plan on having more of these throughout the year, using different recipe themes.  What is better than food and friends and a little time out?  I must admit, at 3:00 that afternoon I was ready to sit down and not get up again, and the thought of doing hair, face, decent clothes, plus making dinner for family and to take, was not a very happy thing for me to face.  Yet, I got up and did it and really, really enjoyed myself.  So, I understand how hard it is sometimes to get up and get there, plus there has been so much sickness going on and so many sports, etc.  Hopefully we will see more of you  next time.

Also, I wanted to thank all of you who were willing to sign up to help out with Sister Williams, but, for the time being, don't expect any phone calls from her, she had a serious fall last week and is currently in the hospital in Caliente for an undetermined amount of time, depends on her rehab, when they will have her up and going again.  If you had a chance to stop in and say Hi-I am sure she might appreciate that, and we will let you know when she is home again.

Congrats to the Bradfield family on the arrival of their daughter, Andrea almost two weeks ago.  Dad said both are doing well after a little bout of jaundice, and they like having a little pink around.

We also have the Beckstrands home again from their mission to the Phillipines--they will be reporting the 16th in sacrament, while Elder Ben Baker will be home THIS week and reporting his mission to Peru on Sunday!  Next month brings home a few more--we'll keep you posted.

I wanted to thank our visiting teachers for their great job lately, since we adjusted routes a couple of months ago we have really seen some GREAT things coming through on the reports, we are also getting some GREAT feedback on some of those changes, and that really helps us as a presidency feel good and that we are gaining th inspiration we need to direct the visiting teaching, though it is a constant work in progress.  My one concern is that though our numbers were reported as 100% for the month of December, we did hear of a few discrepancy's from that report and so we just want to remind you to please make sure you are reporting and to make sure that your sisters know who you are and that they also know that you have contacted them.  Sometimes just saying "HI" in the store might be about all you can do that month, but often times they don't recognize that as a visit????  So, please help them to know that you have actually made contact with them, checked on them, and most of all--pray for them!  We thank you for all that you do and for the great service you give--PLEASE remember to report to Sister Perkins if you know of any concerns or if there are any meals we can be providing or any other help, sometimes I feel like so much goes without my knowing and you are my link to the sisters so feel free to call, even if I may already know.

Jan 2012 PRESIDENCY MESSAGE

(Our Focus this year in Relief Society is: CHARITY NEVER FAILETH )
Dear Sisters,

A new year often represents a clean slate, a new start for many in the world. Resolutions are made, goals are set, and the plan is to somehow become better this year than you were in the last. As members of the church, we know that this opportunity is available to us everyday through the gift of repentance. But, yet, it is also kind of nice to have a time to set down and evaluate where we are in our progress, and to recognize that we always have room to improve.

I think that the greatest source of improvement we can have as Heavenly Father’s children is gained through the development of CHARITY. It is through Charity that we truly come to know and understand our Savior and His plan for us. It is through Charity that we become like him. We hear so much of Charity, and yet are we sometimes overwhelmed by trying to have it? Are there so many aspects to it that we feel almost helpless to truly achieve it? Sister Jeannie McAllister wrote, “Living a Christ-like life doesn’t mean that we must single-handedly save our spouse, the office, the ward, or the world. It does mean we can aid our brothers and sisters with love and encouragement as we progress through life. It does mean we must care for and replenish ourselves regularly so that we are fuller, purer vessels from which others may draw sustenance.”
If we take a little more time to love, spend a little less on judging, fit in more personal study of the gospel, we will truly develop the character of Charity bit by bit in our lives. May this be our goal not just this year, but every year.
Love,

Jamie, Cindy, Loree, & Kathy

Are we Feasting like Flamingoes??

Last week in our presidency meeting, Sister Stackhouse shared a though with us from the January New Era, and since I LOVED it and thought that most of us probably don't have a New Era unless we have teenagers, we might have missed it, so I thought I would share here the neat thought that Whitney Hinckley was willing to share with us, so here it is.......

Feast Like a Flamingo
By Whitney Hinckley

These funny birds taught me a lesson about being a recognizable member of the Church.

The first time I saw flamingos in real life, I loved their beautiful, rich pink color—it was very different from the bubblegum pink of the plastic lawn ornaments I’d seen.



I was at an aquarium and learned that flamingos’ bright pink color comes from the food they eat, which contains high amounts of beta carotene—a pigment that causes an orange, pink, or yellow color. That means that if flamingos don’t feast on the algae and brine shrimp they usually eat, their feathers will eventually become white—and we might not even recognize the white birds as flamingos!



After that day, I started to think about those flamingos in a way I never would have expected.



I thought about what I feast on and if it changes how others identify me. In 2 Nephi 31:20, we are encouraged to “press forward, feasting upon the word of Christ.” I thought about the stories of how people not of our faith describe the members they know as having a “glow” around them or a light in their eyes. Could it be that by our feasting, instead of turning pink like a flamingo, we receive that light from Christ? We receive the Lord’s image in our countenances when we are born of the Spirit (see Alma 5:14). We are recognized as disciples of Christ because of that identifying factor.



If pink flamingos are any indication of good feasting, the opposite is also true. When a flamingo stops eating the nutrient-rich food he needs, he becomes ill and pale. When we stop feasting on the word of Christ, we also slowly become spiritually ill and lose our bright, godly countenances. Eventually, we would no longer be recognized as a faithful follower of Christ.



The more I thought about this, the more applicable the flamingos in the aquarium became to me. They were pink because they were doing everything right. They were not ashamed to be pink—they are supposed to be pink, and because they feasted they were pink. They were beautiful. They were identifiable.



As children of our Heavenly Father, we can all be beautiful too! It’s a beauty that comes from inside, by feasting on the right things. We should want to have Christ’s image in our countenances. We can be just as identifiable as members of the Church as a flamingo is for being a flamingo.

The Eminent Women of the St. George Temple - Meridian Magazine - LDS, Mormon and Latter-day Saint News and Views

I have a subscription to Meridian Magazine through my email and received this article which I wanted to share because I thought it was so neat and interesting. We have heard many times the story of President Woodruff doing work in the St George temple for the eminent men of the nation, mainly those of the 'Founding Fathers' but I have never heard of the work being done for many 'eminent women' of the time. Though Pres. Woodruff does not say if they appeared in the temple or not, there work was done for them at the time and many of them were not considered to be eminent during their time--nor would they have probably been none to Pres. Woodruff as such. I hope you enjoy the information and the article, make sure you watch the video, too!


CLICK HERE FOR THE FULL ARTICLE::
Meridian Magazine - The Eminent Women of the St. George Temple - Meridian Magazine - LDS, Mormon and Latter-day Saint News and Views

You can also see the full painting at:

http://www.bedardfineart.com/

A New Year, A New Manual

Just in case you have missed it, or you want to be ready for Relief Society on Sunday, I wanted to remind you that we are done with the Gospel Principles manual after two years of studying it, and we are returning to the Teachings of the Presidents of the Church Manuals, this year's President being George Albert Smith.  LEsson number one is: Living What We Believe.  BUT, there is some great information about this great leader if you want to take the time to read and better know and understand the man behind the book. 

Also, as a presidency, we are focusing on the Relief Society theme, "Charity Never Faileth" for our Presidency Messages each month.  I taught "Charity Never Faileth and Procedes Forgiveness and other virtues"  for January.  If you missed it, here are a few great quotes and thoughts I found along the way.  I think that I probably needed this more than anyone, but it has really made me think a lot more lately about my thoughts and actions and how much charity or sometimes how little charity I mmy have in my life.  Hopefully we can all work a little harder this year to gain a little more charity in our lives.

“There is one virtue … which, if cherished and practiced by the Saints, would prove salvation to thousands upon thousands. I allude to charity, or love, from which proceed forgiveness, long suffering, kindness, and patience” (Teachings of Presidents of the Church: Brigham Young.)

President Ezra Taft Benson taught us “The world today speaks a great deal about love, and it is sought for by many, but the pure love of Christ differs greatly from what the world thinks of love. Charity never seeks selfish gratification. The pure love of Christ seeks only the eternal growth and joy of others.”

Elder Marvin J. Ashton (1915–94) of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles: “We often equate charity with visiting the sick, taking in casseroles to those in need, or sharing our excess with those who are less fortunate. But really, true charity is much, much more.



“Real charity is not something you give away; it is something that you acquire and make a part of yourself. And when the virtue of charity becomes implanted in your heart, you are never the same again. …


“Perhaps the greatest charity comes when we are kind to each other, when we don’t judge or categorize someone else, when we simply give each other the benefit of the doubt or remain quiet. Charity is accepting someone’s differences, weaknesses, and shortcomings; having patience with someone who has let us down; or resisting the impulse to become offended. … Charity is refusing to take advantage of another’s weakness and being willing to forgive someone who has hurt us. Charity is expecting the best of each other” (“The Tongue Can Be a Sharp Sword,” Ensign, May 1992, 18–19).