Thoughts and stories, by Pal

This article I found in Meridian Magazine today seems to sum up the "Priesthood Controversy" in a beautiful way.  I hope you readers don't mind my posting timely articles I find -- I'd love to be able to write such articles myself, but those who write, and have done their research are such a help to all of us.  Enjoy!  It mentions interesting facts in Church History that are relevant!!   I have added the highlights -- Monday, July 07 2014 The Priesthood Controversy: Missing the Point By Marilynne Linford Many voices are weighing in on why women in the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints should or should not receive the priesthood. Perhaps that is not the issue. On April 6, 1830, the Church was organized. To be officially recognized, according to the laws of the state of New York, a religion had to have at least six members. And there were six. As the converts started coming by ones, then by tens, then by hundred...

I ran across this a few days ago, and it has some good ideas in it.  If you are like me, you really don't give a Sacrament meeting talk often, -- unless you're a returned missionary or a member of the High Council!  But here are some ideas to save for a future time: 5 Ways Not to Start a Sacrament Talk (And What to Do Instead) KELSEY BERTEAUX - JUNE 09, 2014 Speaking in sacrament meeting is tough--make your next talk amazing by avoiding these five openers and trying something else instead. Chances are, if you’re a Latter-day Saint, you’ve had this happen to you before: it’s a Tuesday night like any other. Our family has just finished dinner, and we’re clearing the table when the phone rings. It’s the bishop. The conversation lasts less than two minutes, but the worry we feel coming away from that phone call will haunt us for the next week: we’ve been asked to give a talk in sacrament meeting. We prepare as best we can, prayerfully researching everywhere o...

Tomorrow, July 6th, 2014, is another Fast and Testimony meeting.  I read an interesting article which gives great ideas on bearing our testimonies.  I hope you enjoy it. Bearing Your Testimony: 5 Powerful Tips KELSEY BERTEAUX -  Sitting in the back of the chapel during Fast and Testimony meeting feels like a safe bet--until we get the spiritual prompting to stand up and bear our testimonies. For several minutes, we struggle with whether or not we really should. We rationalize. We're teaching Gospel Doctrine this week. We just bore our testimony last year, right? We don't have anything special to say. We're scared. Unlike a talk, which is usually  prepared in advance , testimonies are usually given spur of the moment, and that makes them a whole different kind of difficult. But a personal testimony, accompanied by the Spirit, is one of the more powerful teaching tools we have. When we testify of truths, even ineloquently, others' spirits can recogniz...

FOR MY HUSBAND, WAYNE, THE 4TH OF JULY IS QUITE A DAY!  HE WENT ON A MISSION TO SWEDEN IN DEC. 1950, TOGETHER WITH HIS TWIN BROTHER, BLAINE.  THEY ARRIVED HOME ON JULY 4TH, 1953!   WAYNE AND I MET ON A BLIND DATE THE NEXT MONTH, IN AUGUST, AND THEN IN SEPTEMBER WAYNE AND BLAINE ENTERED THE ARMY -- THEIR DRAFT PAPERS WERE WAITING WHEN THEY GOT HOME FROM THEIR MISSIONS. SO AFTER BASIC TRAINING, THEY BOTH WERE SENT TO TRIESTE, BY ITALY (DURING THE KOREAN WAR) AND ENDED UP SPENDING THEIR ARMY DAYS IN EUROPE.  THEY HAD A 21 DAY LEAVE BEFORE THEY CAME HOME, IN WHICH THEY WERE ABLE TO GO BACK TO THEIR MISSION FIELD IN SWEDEN AND VISIT MANY FRIENDS. THEN ! !  THEY CAME HOME FROM THE ARMY ALSO ON JULY 4TH, 1955 ! WAYNE LOVES TO SAY HE "CAME IN WITH A BANG! "    WAYNE AND I (PAL) HAD BEEN WRITING MOST OF THOSE ARMY DAYS, AND WE HAVE A LOVELY BOOK OF MOST OF OUR LETTERS.   SO JULY 4TH, TODAY, IS 59 YEARS SINCE WE RE-MET AFTER MEETING FOR THE ONE BLIN...

This just came out in mormonnewsroom.org.  The URL is this: http://www.mormonnewsroom.org/article/church-expands-use-of-digital-devices-for-missionary-work Our daughter who has a daughter on a mission found it.  It is really fascinating to me -- an older lady who has served 2 couple missions.  The first one we had to use "snail mail" 20 years ago, and 14 years ago,on the 2nd we could use e mail, but not all of our family even was using e mail at that time.  Also, have you heard of what recently has been called the "Monson Rule" ?  It is that every missionary write home to their parents every week.  Of course, that should have been happening already. THE CHURCH IS TRUE, AND THE LORD IS HASTENING HIS WORK AS WE WATCH! ! ! NEWS STORY  —  2 JULY 2014 Church Expands Use of Digital Devices for Missionary Work VIDEO: Elder David F. Evans discusses recent updates in the Church's missionary efforts SALT LAKE CITY  —  M...