Message on Visiting Teaching from Sister Adamson

Sisters,

President Asay asked us to include messages about Sabbath Day worship and the Sacrament along with the visiting teaching messages this year.  When you teach the commandment to keep the Sabbath Day Holy, teach both the principle and the promise.

When Joyce Haverfield gave a talk on this very subject she quoted Leviticus 26:2-12 .  That scripture promises many blessings and protections when we obey God's command to keep His Sabbath day sacred. Isaiah 58:13-14, together with D&C 59, are powerful scriptures that teach the principle with a promise. If you keep the Sabbath day holy you will be bless with temporal blessings.  D&C 59:9-15 give the principle; 16-19 give the Lord's promise.

This year our visiting teaching message have been explaining the attributes of Christ.  When we partake of the sacrament worthily, we receive forgiveness for our sins and we become fertile, fallow ground for the blessings of change.  We begin acquiring the attributes of the Savior.

By keeping the Sabbath Day holy and partaking ofthe Sacrament worthily we are bless temporally and spiritually.  I promise if you will sincerely make the effort to teach the principles of keeping the Sabbath Day holy and partaking the Sacrament worthily as directed by President Asay, blessings will distill upon the lives of the sisters you teach.

-Sister Adamson

July Activity: Fun ideas for bringing families together and sharing family history

We hope you enjoyed the activity, and for those of you who were unable to attend, we hope to see you next time.

Sister McMahon spoke to us about how to make family history coloring books. They were really cute! If you have questions about it, I'm sure she would LOVE to help you.

Sister Perry talked to us about the family history center (which is right next to the church building, folks!). They have a LOT of resources. Her biggest point was that there is NO good reason not to be doing family history work if you have the time. All you need to know is what you need to know--the family history center can help you with the rest! They can teach you how to search for names, how to use several different software programs, and everything else you might need to know. Check the "resources" tab to see the days/time the family history center is open.

Sister Norton showed us a new part of FamilySearch, which is the "descendency" view of your family tree. This allows you to work back down through your family tree so you can see cousins and what work they may need done. Cool! She (or Sister Haverfield, or anyone at the family history center) would be more than happy to help you with this great new tool.

We had a beautiful display of items from personal family histories, and several sisters brought family recipes to sample. See below for links to the recipes.

Shelley Hughes - Pineapple Cookies
Jordyn Whiting - Elephant Foot Pudding
Effie Dickerson - Pinwheels
Joyce Haverfield - Homemade Bread
Ariel Weaver - Spicy Chicken Dip

"Self-Reliance" by Sister Adamson

In our ward councils we have been asked by our First Presidency to discuss and implement two principles that are needed and very important to our spiritual and temporal welfare.  The first is keeping the Sabbath Day holy.  The second is self-reliance.

I loved the talk Joyce Haverfield face in Sacrament meeting on the subject of keeping the Sabbath day holy.  She quoted Leviticus 26:2-12.  That scripture promises many blessings and protections when we obey God’s command to keep His Sabbath day sacred.  Isaiah 58:13-14 together with D&C 59, are powerful scriptures that teach a principle with a promise. If you keep the Sabbath day holy you will be blessed with temporal blessings.  D&C 59:9-15 gives the principle; 16-19 gives the Lord’s promise.

The reason I bring up the principle of keeping the Sabbath day holy first, is because it contains the Lord’s promises for temporal blessings.  The only other commandment that contains the same promises is the command to pay an honest tithe.  Temporal blessings are important if we want to be self-reliant.

But self-reliance is much more than having monies or temporal blessings.  It’s an attitude of independence that helps build self-esteem and self-respect. Elder L. Tom Perry gave a talk entitled, “Becoming Self-Reliant” in which he makes the point that after the Lord gave Nephi the commandment to construct a ship, Nephi’s first question was, “Whither shall I go that I may find ore to molten, that I may make tools to construct the ship after the manner which thou hast shown unto me?” 

Elder Perry says, “This is one of the more interesting stories we have in the scriptures because it tells of an instance in which the Lord provided help but then stepped aside to allow one of His sons to exercise his own initiative. I have sometimes wondered what would have happened if Nephi had asked the Lord for tools instead of a place to find the ore to make the tools.  I doubt the Lord would have honored Nephi’s request.”

From the beginning of time, the Lord counseled Adam that he would eat his bread by the sweat of his brow and cursed the ground for his sake.  It’s interesting to me that Adam’s need for self-reliance was one of the first directives given to him.

Elder Marion G. Romney said, “The practice of coveting and receiving unearned benefits has now become…fixed in our society…  Elections often turn on what the candidates promise to do for voters from government funds.  This practice, if universally accepted and implemented in any society, will make slaves of its citizens.”

President Henry D. Moyle spoke of those who through no reason of their own cannot be self-reliant; “This great principle does not deny to the needy nor to the poor the assistance they should have.  The wholly incapacitated, the aged, the sickly are cared for with all tenderness, but every able-bodied person is enjoined to do his utmost for himself to avoid dependence, if his own efforts can make such a course possible.”

The Lord tells us in D&C 29:34-35 that he gives no commandment to man that is temporal.  He also says man is to be “an agent unto himself.”  Man cannot be an agent unto himself if he is not self-reliant. Elder Marion G. Romney said, “Both independence and self-reliance are critical keys to our spiritual growth.  Whenever we get into a situation which threatens our self-reliance our freedom is threatened as well.  If we increase our dependence, we will find an immediate decrease in our freedom to act.”

I found a great link on the LDS website (click here) that illustrates the freedom that comes from self-reliance.  I hope you enjoy the stories of the saints learning this principle, as much as I did.  It’s amazing and inspiring.