Testimony

LDS.org - Liahona Article - Testimony

This talk was brought to my attention...by Jill Normandeau and Meridel Barden. I asked myself...what did I KNOW and what did I BELIEVE...

I realized what a precious GIFT it was to have the KNOWLEDGE through the Holy Ghost...that something was TRUE...

For an interesting...exercise...Make a list of what YOU KNOW...what you have been given through the Holy Ghost. If you find...there are some very important things you still have not had confirmed through the Holy Ghost...perhaps, you will want to do what NEPHI did...

"I, Nephi, was DESIROUS also that I might see, and hear, and know of these things, (what his father saw), by the power of the Holy Ghost, which is the gift of God unto all those who diligently seek him...." (1 Nephi 10:17)

Verse 19: "For he that DILIGENTLY SEEKETH shall FIND; and the mysteries of God shall be unfolded unot them by the power of the Holy Ghost..."

1 Nephi 11:1 - "...I had DESIRED to know the things that my father had seen, and BELIEVING that the LORD was ABLE TO MAKE THEM KNOWN unto ME, as I sat PONDERING in mine heart............"

Counsel to the Sisters of the Church

If you were unable to attend the STAKE/GENERAL Relief Society Broadcast this past Saturday, please, go to the following website to see excerpts from this event. I had some FAVORITE moments...especially during President Thomas S. Monson's talk...You have got to LOVE his humor and his FACIAL expressions....(smile)

Please go to the following web address:
http://new.lds.org/pages/general-rs-meeting-sept-2010?lang=eng

Counsel from the Lord...

I thought our Stake Conference this past weekend was TERRIFIC! Both Saturday night and Sunday morning sessions! We were given GREAT COUNSEL...I am going to just highlight some of President Dieter F. Uchtdorf's talk...I hope each of you are pondering WHY would the Lord give us this counsel...at this time...but, will ACT upon the counsel that was given...for a PROMISE was given if we do....

President Uchtdorf quoted a saying by Buddha:
"Conquer the angry man by love. Conquer the ill-natured man by goodness. Conquer the miser with generosity. Conquer the liar with truth."

He also quoted this from President Brigham Young:
"I have proven to my satisfaction, according to the best knowledge I can gather, that man can be deceived by the sight of the natural eye, he can be deceived by the hearing of the ear, and by the touch of the hand; that he can be deceived by all that are called the natural senses. But there is one thing in which he can not be deceived. What is that? It is the operation of the Holy Ghost, the Spirit and the power of God upon t he creature." (Journal of Discourses, Conference Address - 17 September 1876.)

He told us the following (to the best of my ability to take notes in the dark) (smile):

• President Monson has a CLEAR VIEW for the direction of this church.
• Challenging times
• We are inspire our youth to SERVE and MAKE WISE CHOICES
• Prepare ourselves to SERVE THE LORD
• Save your money
• Those who are preparing to serve a mission - STUDY Chapter 3 in "Preach My Gospel".
• Serving a mission will bless GENERATIONS and it is a DIVINE CALLING.
• PRAY for WISDOM
• TRUST in the LORD
• Rely on the Spirit of the Lord
• We are living in a "gathering" place
• Life is exciting and fascinating
  
• Satan is keeping us from using our TIME WISELY and SETTING GOALS
• GOALS forces us to choose a course that will occupy our time
• Evaluate where you are - make a course evaluation
• He who loves the Lord will keep His commandments
• We are the Lord's friend - if we keep His commandments.
• Tithing is a law that is about FAITH - all the commandments are...Given by a LOVING and CARING Heavenly Father.
• Conference is a way to strengthen us.
• Let virtue guide our thoughts
• Satan desires to sift us as wheat.
• When we are converted, we are to strengthen our brothers and sisters.
• Never be ashamed of the gospel of Jesus Christ.
• RELIGHT the FIRE of CONVERSION!
• This is a time to BELIEVE in MIRACLES!
• 3 PROVEN ways to strengthen our CONVERSION:

1. Have a CURRENT TEMPLE RECOMMEND - another meaning to "CTR" - besides meaning "Choose the Right"...We can look at our CTR rings and think --- "CURRENT TEMPLE RECOMMEND"...(smile)
2. READ our SCRIPTURES DAILY (Sister Mary Cook - 1st Counselor YW - also, gave 3 statements of counsel...but, she specifically stated to READ THE BOOK OF MORMON DAILY!) (Isn't it nice to know....WE ARE ALREADY FOLLOWING THEIR COUNSEL!!!) (smile)
3. PRAY to our Father DAILY! - President Uchtdorf said that NOTHING CAN TAKE THE PLACE OF PRAYER!

• World needs the gospel - People need the MORAL VALUES as NEVER BEFORE! - especially this RISING GENERATION!
• President Uchtdorf "as an apostle of the Lord" PROMISED if we will follow THE COUNSEL he gave us....that we will see MIRACLES in our FAMILIES and in our own PERSONAL LIVES!
  

You raise me up slideshow

"How to Instill the Love of the Lord in our Children"

One of the subjects last night in Stake Conference was: "Instill the LOVE of the Lord in our Children". A sister in our Ward just happened to send me this You Tube of a 2-year old reciting the 23rd Psalm. This clip reminded me...of my experience....YEARS ago...when I was Primary President when I had ALL the children from 3 years of age to 11 years...MEMORIZE all the Primary Scriptures for the year. Each child on a ONE-to-ONE meeting with me...would recite the scripture of the month...

I am a stickler about doing things WORD PERFECT! At first, it was the PARENTS who balked at such an idea. They said this would be too difficult for their child to do....but, I insisted...

I am here to TESTIFY that the only ones who were holding their children back...were the PARENTS NOT the child....In time....Almost the ENTIRE PRIMARY were passing off to me...WORD PERFECT...INCLUDING the "3" year olds! They would CHASE ME DOWN THE HALLWAYS...."Sister Smith....Sister Smith....can I pass off my scripture NOW!?"

Please, understand, there were a couple of children who had learning disabilities...and I recognized who they were...but...........when they would RECITE...to the best of their ability.........they BEAMED....They literally LITE UP THE ROOM.......when it was their turn to recite what they could! IT WAS WORD PERFECT in my mind.........and they KNEW THEY HAD ACCOMPLISHED a GREAT DEAL!......(smile)

Yes...ALL we need to do is take a little time and help them...for our children CAN DO IT!!! MEMORIZING scriptures...in securing words from our Heavenly Father...into their little minds...will BECOME a part of their HEARTS...and sink into their SOULS...for the SPIRIT will TESTIFY that what they just learned....IS TRUE! Starting them out YOUNG is SO IMPORTANT...It is the "planting of the seed"....parable.....

Even if you do NOT have children...you can be an example...HELP your own GRANDCHILDREN...support a CHILD in our WARD...There are plenty of them...that you can MENTOR...

Watch this little video...It testifies...of the truth...on HOW to INSTILL the LOVE of the LORD in our children...It can be done...I PROMISE!

STAKE CONFERENCE - Saturday Night Session

Garvin with Daughter #2

Garvin and Daughter #3 on her wedding day

Garvin with daughter #4 on her wedding day
Wiping away his tears...

Garvin with daughter #1 on her wedding Day

Dear Sisters!
If you missed tonight's Stake Conference session...you missed a GREAT MEETING!!!!! I hope to highlight some of the thoughts that were expressed tonight...but, my word, I took SO MANY NOTES...that it will take me all week...to get them down...

So, this is what I hope to do...AFTER, tomorrow morning's broadcast from Salt Lake City, I will put thoughts together...and post something all this week! HOWEVER...this is what I would LOVE FOR ANY OF YOU TO DO!!!!!

PLEASE, if you have thoughts on what you heard either TONIGHT or tomorrow's morning's session....PLEASE...ADD YOUR COMMENTS to each POST...including this one! The more INPUT from each of you...will only BENEFIT all the REST OF US!!!!! Getting just my thoughts....is NOT GOOD ENOUGH!

I will say this much about tonight...It was a GREAT TRIBUTE to WOMANHOOD.....Heavenly Father LOVES His DAUGHTERS...VERY MUCH!!!!! Yes, He LOVES His sons...but, there is a relationship between Father and Daughter...that is TENDER...and ever so sacred...We are indeed his "baby girls"...and always will be...I picture us with our Heavenly Father...much like the wedding pictures of our daughters with their father.....sweet and ever so tender...

YOUTH - YM-YW ACTIVITIES - Kalispell 3rd Ward

Parents:
I will try my best to keep up with the Youth Activities of our Ward, but NO PROMISES! (smile)

I still need to meet up with the Young Women's President. Please, be patient with me...I will work on this as I begin to receive information.

In the meantime:
Here is a STAKE EVENT for all YOUTH of the Kalispell Montana STAKE!
STAKE YOUTH FIRESIDE - 6 p.m.
Sunday - September 26th

"Letters to God"

Have you ever written a letter to God before? I have never thought to do it myself... till I watched a Christian film called..."Letters to God" tonight. The story was inspired by the true life of a young boy who was dying of cancer.

A scripture was mentioned - 2 Corinthians 3:3...I must admit, I hadn't heard this verse referred to very much. "Forasmuch as ye are manifestly declared to be the epistle of Christ ministered by us, written not with ink, but with the Spirit of the living God; not in tables of stone, but in fleshy tables of the heart."

It caused me to search Conference talks to see if anyone ever used this verse or part of it in a talk...There weren't too many...but, I found a few lines that made reference to 2 Corinthians 3:3.

"An easiness to believe will come when "the word of God is ETCHED into our hearts." (General Conference - 2004 - October - Elder Michael Ringwood)

"In each of us, the RESTORED GOSPEL of JESUS CHRIST can be "written not with ink, but with the Spirit of the living God; not in tables of stone, but in fleshy tablets of the HEART." (General Conference - 2003 - October - Relief Society - Anne C. Pingree)

"Our day-to-day offerings of charity are "written not with ink, but with the spirit of the living God...in the fleshy tables of our hearts." Little by little our charitable acts change our natures, define our characters, and ultimately make us women with the courage and commitment to say to the Lord, "Here am I; send me." (General Conference - October - 2002 - Relief Society - Anne C. Pingree)

We talk to Father...in our daily prayers..............but, I wonder...........if we wrote to Heavenly Father, our thoughts...daily...in a JOURNAL............. Would our thoughts be deeper...? Would we see things in a different LIGHT...? Just.......wondering.......

LDS.org - Liahona Article - The Book of Mormon as a Personal Guide

LDS.org - Liahona Article - The Book of Mormon as a Personal Guide