Wednesday, December 18, 2013
Sunday, December 1, 2013
December Birthdays
3 Denise New-Hamilton
8 Beverly Massey
14 Rachelle Infanger
14 Cherie Walters
17 Chelsea Griffith
18 Julie Walker
20 Sandy Osborn
23 Kristina Brewer
25 Jessica Anderson
25 Tanya Gutierrez
27 Darleen Johnson
28 Connie Durham
30 Carol Cooper
31 LaVerne Hathaway
Friday, November 1, 2013
November Visiting Teaching Message
Visiting Teaching Message
Visiting Teachers Led Me to
Jesus Christ
By Jayne P. Bowers
“[The Lord] said unto
[Peter] the third time, Lovest thou me?
And [Peter] said unto him, Lord, thou knowest all things; thou knowest
that I love thee. Jesus saith unto him,
Feed my sheep” (John 21:17).
In the late 1970s, a friend
asked me to go to Relief Society with her.
“What’s that?” I asked. My friend
simply said, “Come and see.” Wow! I was
captivated from the first moment.
Later that summer Leann came
to my house and said that she was my visiting teacher. This seemed strange and wonderful at the same
time, especially since I was not a member of the Church. Here she was taking time from her busy
schedule to share a spiritual thought with me and to see if there was anything
she could help me with. I knew from her spirit that she was sincere. I’ve never forgotten Leann and the messages
she shared with me.
A couple of years passed, and
Frances moved into our ward. Truthfully,
it wasn’t exactly “our” ward since I wasn’t a member yet, but I thought of it
that way. By this time I had two little
girls, and I could see how the Church auxiliaries were blessing their
lives. Come rain or come shine, Frances,
my new visiting teacher, visited me with a lesson, a laugh, a story, or a
helping hand. I recall when Frances came
one hectic afternoon. Seeing that I
couldn’t sit and talk, Frances stirred my culinary concoctions on the stove
while I tended to my daughters’ needs.
Years passed and I
moved. As much as I hated to leave my
Church friends, I soon found another group of sisters with strong testimonies
and big hearts in the Relief Society in “my” new ward. A Relief Society teacher gave us a decorated
to-do list and encouraged us to write “Be kind” at the top of our lists each
day. The sisters sitting beside me and I
thought it was a grand idea, especially since it supported the Relief Society
motto “charity never faileth” (Moroni 7:46).
Then I read a story about a
pioneer women. When that woman was a
child, the prophet asked her family to help settle a Latter-day Saint community
in a remote area. Tragedy befell when
one of her siblings died. Her mother was
distraught and deep sadness permeated the family.
One day this little girl was
looking out the window. As far as she
could see, a blanket of snow surrounded the family’s modest home,. As the little girl stared at the horizon, she
saw two people trudging toward the house.
On they came, slowly making their way, and suddenly the child realized
who they were—they were her mother’s visiting teachers.
That story inspired me. I was baptized in May 1983. It is an honor to be a visiting teacher my
self. I love associating with so many
women who exemplify the “virtuous woman” whose “price is far above rubies’ (Proverbs
42:20). It is wonderful to be with women
who are also striving to be kind, to love one another, and bring others unto
Christ.
“Many women have reported
that the reason they came back into Church activity was because a faithful
visiting teacher came month after month and ministered to them, rescuing them,
loving them, blessing them.
“At times the most important
blessing about your visit will be to just listen. Listening bring comfort, understanding, and
healing. Still another time you may need to roll up your sleeves and go to work
in the home or help to calm a crying child.”
“When I went visiting
teaching, I always felt better. I was
lifted, loved and blessed usually much more than the sister I was
visiting. My desire to serve increased. And I could see what a beautiful way Heavenly
Father has planned for us to watch over and care for one another.”
November Birthdays
HAPPY BIRTHDAY!!
1 Wolha McGinnis
5 Virginia Kiesig
6 Jacqueline Jones
7 Blythe Jameson
10 Shannon Shearer
11 Nicole Hansen
15 Stephanie Rigby
20 Caryol Tolman
24 Kathy Afa
24 Catherine Christensen
23 Peggy Henshaw
24 Kellie Price
26 Meranda Butler
28 Suzette Salazar
Tuesday, October 1, 2013
October Visiting Teaching Message
Visiting Teaching Message
The Divine Mission
Prayerfully study
this material and seek to know what to share.
How will understanding the life and Mission
Him and bless those
you watch over through visiting teaching?
For more information, go to reliefsociety.lds.org.
This is the first in a series
of Visiting Teaching Messages featuring aspects of the mission of the Savior.
Jesus Christ “created the
heavens and the earth’ (3 Nephi 9:15). He
did so through the power of the priesthood, under the direction of our Heavenly
Father (see Moses 1:33).
“How grateful we should be
that a wise Creator fashioned an earth and placed us here,” said President
Thomas S. Monson,”… that we might experience a time of testing, an opportunity
to prove ourselves in order to qualify for all that God has prepared for us to
receive,”¹ When we use are agency to obey God’s commandments and repent, we
become worthy to return to live with Him.
Of the Creation, President
Dieter F. Uchtdorf, Second Counselor in the First Presidency, said:
“We are the reason He created
the universe! …
“This is a paradox of man;
compared to God, man is nothing; yet we are everything to God.”² Knowing that Jesus Christ created the earth
for us because we mean everything to Heavenly Father can help us increase our
love for Them.
From the Scriptures
John 1:3; Hebrews 1:1-2;
Mosiah 3:8;
Moses 1:30-33,35-39; Abraham
3:24-25
From Our History
We have been created in God’s
image (see Moses 2:26-27), and we have divine potential. The Prophet Joseph Smith admonished the
sisters in Relief Society to “live up to [their] privilege.”³ With that encouragement as a foundation,
sisters in The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints have been taught to
live up to their divine potential by fulfilling God’s purposes for them. “As they come to understand who they really
are—God’s daughters, with an innate capacity to love and nurture—they reach
their potential as holy women.”4
“You are now placed in a
situation where you can act according to those sympathies which God has planted
in your bosoms,” said the Prophet Joseph Smith.
“If you live up to these principles how great and glorious!—if you live
up to your privilege, the angels cannot by restrained from being your
associates.”5
What Can I Do?
1. How does seeking to understand our divine
nature increase our love for the Savior?
2. How can we show our gratitude for God’s
creations?
Notes
1. Thomas S. Monson, “The Race of Life,” Ensign,
May 2012,91.
2. Dieter F. Uchtdorf, “You
Matter to Him” Ensign, Nov. 2011, 20.
3. Joseph Smith, in Daughters in My Kingdom: The History and
Work of Relief Society (2011, 171.
4. Daughters in my Kingdom, 171.
5. Joseph Smith, in Daughters in my Kingdom, 169
Official Web site of The
Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints
©2013 Intellectual Reserve,
Inc. All Rights Reserved
October Birthdays
5 Lopelini Lasitani
11 Shirley Davis
11 Jan Peterson
12 Pilar Gutierrez
16 Lynn Foltz
20 Sheri Ann Madrid
22 Delia Blackshear
24 Candace Aiono
24 Suzanne Trader
25 Brandy Rodriguez
30 Thuy Do Fitzgerald
31 Gina Oltman
31 Heidi Ropati
Sunday, September 8, 2013
October Gifts for Giving Crafts
Candy Sleigh-$3.00
Snowman Chocolate Bar & Socks-$3.00
Snowman Popcorn & Gloves-$2.00
Nativity Ornament-$4.00
Children's Quiet Book (re-usable coloring sheets with Dry Erase crayons)-$10.00
Wood Photo Holder-$4.00
Beaded Necklace & Bracelet Set-$10.00
Ribbon Door Wreath-$8.00
Sign-ups will be going on every Sunday September in the foyer by the Relief Society Room. Please give your payment to Kristina Freeman by Sept. 29th. You can also place your order on the blog or on the Garden Grove 6th Ward Facebook page. Any questions please ask Kristina Freeman. See you all October 22nd for a great evening of crafting!!
Friday, September 6, 2013
September Birthdays
1 Terry McCaffery
7 Leanne Lornow
9 Helen Burgess
14 Kris Johnson
15 Loreen Berlin
16 Mary Hicks
17 Betty Juchau
19 Barbara Dotson
21 Nancy Latimer
25 Ashli Cope
28 Deborah Barker
28 Patty Hagerman
September Visiting Teaching Message
Visiting Teaching Message
Self-Reliance
Prayerfully study
this material and, as appropriate, discuss it with the sisters you visit. Use the questions to help you strengthen your
sisters to make Relief Society an active part of your own life. For more information, go to reliefsociety.lds.org
Self-reliance is the ability,
commitment, and effort to provide for the spiritual and temporal well-being of
ourselves and of our families.¹
As we learn and apply the
principles of self-reliance in our homes and communities, we have opportunities
to care for the poor and needy and to help others become self-reliant so they can
endure times of adversity.
We have the privilege and
duty to use our agency to become self-reliant spiritually and temporally. Speaking of spiritually self-reliance and our
dependence on Heavenly Father, Elder Robert D. Hales of the Quorum of the
Twelve Apostles has taught: “We become
converted and spiritually self-reliant as we prayerfully live our covenants –
through worthily partaking of the sacrament, being worthy of a temple
recommend, and sacrificing to serve others.”²
Elder Hales counseled us to
become self-reliant temporally, “which includes getting a postsecondary
education or vocational training, learning to work, and living within our
means. By avoiding debt and saving money
now, we are prepared for full-time Church service in the years to come. The purpose of both temporal and spiritual
self-reliance is to get ourselves on higher ground so that we can lift others
in need.”³
From the Scriptures
Matthew 25:1-13; 1Timothy
5:8; Alma
From Our History
After the Latter-day Saints
had gathered in the Salt
Lake Valley
1.
Learn to love work and avoid idleness.
2.
Acquire a spirit of self-sacrifice.
3.
Accept personal responsibility for spiritual strength, health,
education, employment, finances, food, and other life-sustaining necessities.
4.
Pray for faith and courage to meet challenges.
5.
Strengthen others who need assistance.4
What Can I Do?
1. How am I helping the sisters I watch over
find solutions to their temporal and spiritual needs?
2. Am I increasing my spiritual self-reliance
through preparing for the sacrament and sacrificing to serve?
Notes
1. See Handbook
²: Administering the Church (2010), 6.1.1
2. Robert D. Hales, “Coming to Ourselves: The Sacrament, the Temple
Ensign, May 2012,34.
3. Robert D. Hales, “Coming to Ourselves,” 36.
4. See Daughters
in my Kingdom: The History and Work of
Relief Society (2011), 51.
Official Web site of The
Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints
©2013 Intellectual Reserve,
Inc. All Rights Reserved
Thursday, August 1, 2013
August Visiting Teaching Message
Visiting Teaching Message
Welfare
Prayerfully study
this material and, as appropriate, discuss it with the sisters you visit. Use the questions to help you strengthen your
sisters to make Relief Society an active part of your own life. For more information, go to reliefsociety.lds.org
Welfare
The purposes of Church
welfare are to help members become self-reliant, to care for the poor and
needy, and to give service. Welfare is
central to the work of Relief society. President
Henry B. Eyring, First Counselor in the First Presidency, has taught:
“[The Lord] has from the
beginning of time provided ways for His disciples to help. He has invited His children to consecrate
their time, their means, and themselves to join with Him in serving others. …
“He has invited and commanded
us to participate in His work to lift up those in need. We make a covenant to do that in the waters
of baptism and in the holy temples of God.
We renew the covenant on Sundays when we partake of the sacrament.”¹
Under the direction of the
bishop or branch president, local leaders assist with spiritual and temporal
welfare. Opportunities to serve often
begin with visiting teachers who seek inspiration to know how to respond to the
needs of each sister they visit.
From the Scriptures
Luke 10:25-37; James 1:27;
Mosiah 4:26; 18: 8-11; Doctrine and Covenants 104:18
From Our History
On June 9, 1842, the Prophet
Joseph Smith charged the sisters in Relief Society to “relieve the poor” and to
“save souls.”² These goals are still at
the heart of Relief Society and are expressed in our motto, “Charity never
faileth” (1 Corinthians 13:8).
Our fifth Relief Society
general president, Emmeline B. Wells, and her counselors launched this motto in
1913 as a reminder of our founding principles:
“We do declare it our purpose to [hold] fast to the inspired teachings
of the Prophet Joseph Smith when he revealed the plan by which women were to be
empowered through the calling of the priesthood to be grouped into suitable
organizations for the purpose of ministering to the sick, assisting the needy,
comforting the aged, warning the unwary, and succoring the orphans.”³
Today the Relief Society has
a worldwide reach as sisters extend charity, the pure love of Christ, to their
neighbors (see Moroni 7:46-47).
What Can I Do?
1. How am I prepared to care for myself and for
my family spiritually and temporally?
2. How can I follow the Savior’s example as I
help meet the needs of the sisters I watch over?
Notes
1. Henry B. Eyring, “Opportunities to Do Good,” “Ensign,
May 2011, 222.
2. Joseph Smith, in Daughters in My Kingdom: The
History and Work of Relief Society (2011), 63.
3. Daughters
in My Kingdom, 63
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(Updated 2/21/2012) Privacy Policy
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August Birthdays!!
1 Camille Jensen
1 Jeanette O’Neal
2 Cindy Wells
3 Debbie Lewis
5 Angie Ronquillo
8 Susan Brown
9 Susan Clark
9 Sharon Hagen
10 Beverly Crawford
12 Jamie Card
16 Connie Hall
17 Marcia Bradbeer
17 Judy Haiser
18 Laura Deniston
18 Tiffany Nutter
19 Floriene Schneider
26 Pamela Burns
27 Gina Boardman
30 Teresa McAllister
30 Kristy Long
31 Heather Elam
Sunday, July 21, 2013
Monday, July 1, 2013
July Birthdays!!
3 Kayleen Yuen
4 Dianne Campbell
5 Julie Juchau
5 Linda Payne
5 Sandy Quintero
13 Emy Osborn
13 Oleta Taylor
14 Karen Maghe
16 Joan Bowring
17 Debbie McCurdy
24 Sharlene Nickell
26 Kelly Lervold
Sunday, June 30, 2013
July Visiting Teaching Message
Visiting Teaching Message
Teaching and Learning the
Gospel
Prayerfully study
this material and, as appropriate, discuss it with the sisters you visit. Use the questions to help you strengthen your
sisters to make Relief Society an active part of your own life. For more information, go to reliefsociety.lds.org
Teaching and Learning the Gospel
Jesus Christ was a master
teacher. He set the example for us as he
“taught women in multitudes and as individuals, on the street and by the
seashore, at the well and in their homes.
He showed loving-kindness toward them and healed them and their family
members.”¹
He taught Martha and Mary and
‘invited them to become His disciples and partake of salvation, ’that good
part’ [Luke 10:42] that would never be taken from them.”²
In our latter-day scriptures,
the Lord commanded us to “teach one another the doctrine of the kingdom”
(D&C 88:77). Of teaching and
learning doctrine, Cheryl A. Esplin, second counselor in the Primary general Presidency,
said, “Learning to fully understand the doctrines of the gospel is a process of
a lifetime and comes ‘line upon line, precept upon precept, here a little and
there a little’ (2 Nephi 28:30).”³
As we learn, study, and pray,
we will teach with the power of the Holy Ghost, who will carry our message
“unto the hearts of the children of men [and women]” (2 Nephi 33:1).
From the Scriptures
Doctrine and Covenants
42:12-13; 84:85
From Our History
Our past prophets have
reminded us as women that we have an important role as teachers in the home and
Church. In September 1979, President
Spencer W. Kimball (1895-1985) asked us to become sister scriptorians.” He said: “Become scholars of the
scriptures—not to put others down, but to lift them up! After all, who has any
greater need to ‘treasure up’ the truths of the gospel (on which they may call
in their moments of need) then do women and mothers who do so much nurturing
and teaching?”4
What Can I Do?
1. How am I prepared to be a better teacher?
2. Do I share my testimony with the sisters I
watch over?
Notes
1. See Daughters
in My Kingdom: The History and Work of
Relief Society (2011), 3.
2. See Daughters
in My Kingdom: The History and Work of
Relief Society (2011), 4.
3. Cheryl A. Esplin, “Teaching Our Children to
Understand,” Ensign, May 2012, 12.
4. Spencer W. Kimball, in Daughters in My Kingdom,50.
Official Website of the Church
of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints © 2013 Intellectual Reserve, Inc. All
Rights Reserved
Saturday, June 1, 2013
June Birthdays!!
1 Laurann Pike
1 Sandy Thomer
4 Ellen Burns
5 Donna Besst
5 Ashley Griffith
7 Patrica Hull
10 Nancy Dodd
10 Betty Notti
20 Jenny Rigby
21 Kristina Freeman
21 Betty Hemmert
24 Tamera Infanger
26 Jennette McCurdy
Sunday, May 26, 2013
June Visiting Teaching Message
Visiting Teaching Message
Joy in Family History
Prayerfully study
this material and, as appropriate, discuss it with the sisters you visit. Use the questions to help you strengthen your
sisters to make Relief Society an active part of your own life. For more information, go to reliefsociety.lds.org
Joy in Family History
Elder Russell M. Nelson of
the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles has taught that the Spirit of Elijah is “a
manifestation of the Holy Ghost bearing witness of the divine nature of the famiy”¹
As members of Christ’s
restored Church, we have the covenant responsibility to search for our
ancestors and provide for them the saving ordinances of the gospel. They without us cannot “be made perfect”
(Hebrews 11:40), and “neither can we without our dead be made perfect” (D&C
128:15).
Family History work prepared
us for the blessings of eternal life and helps us increase our faith and
personal righteousness. Family history
is a vital part of the mission of the Church and enables the work of salvation
and exaltation for all.
President Boyd K. Packer,
President of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles, said: “When we research our own
lines we become interested in more than just names, … Our interest turns our
hearts to our fathers – we seek to find them and to know them and to serve
them.”²
From the Scriptures
Malachi 4:5-6; 1Corinthians
15:29;
D&C 124:28-36; 128:15
From Our History
The Prophet Joseph Smith
taught, “The greatest responsibility in this world that God has laid upon us is
to seek after our dead.”³ We can serve as proxy in the temple for our deceased
ancestors and perform necessary ordinances for them.
Sally Randall of Nauvoo , Illinois
What Can I Do?
1. How can I help the sisters I watch over to do
family history?
2. Am I recording my personal history?
Notes
1. Russell M. Nelson, “A New
Harvest Time,” Ensign, May 1998, 34
2. Boyd K. Packer, “Your Family History; Getting
Started,” Ensign, Ang. 2003, 17.
3. Teachings
of Presidents of the Church; Joseph
Smith (2007), 475.
4. See Daughters
in My Kingdom: The History and Work of
Relief Society (2011), 21.
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of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints © 2013 Intellectual Reserve, Inc. All
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