Answer to question #1--What did I look like before I came to earth???

The family is central to the Creator's plan for the eternal destiny of His children.  The Family Proclamation states.  We sing the words, "I have a family here on earth," but we could also sing, "I have a family there in heaven."  In 1909, the First Presidency of the Church issued an official declaration concerning the spiritual as well as the temporal origin of man.  Presidents Joseph F. Smith, John R. Winder, and Anthon H. Lund wrote; All men and women are in similitude of the universal Father and Mother and are literally the sons and daughters of Deity."

Just as mortal beings take on their physical bodies in a procreative process involving both an earthly father and an earthly mother, the birth of spirits came about "in like manner."  This important truth implies that not only a Heavenly Father is needed in the spiritual procreative process but also a Heavely Mother.

So what does it mean to be a begotten child of God--a daughter or son of heavenly parents?  President Lorenzo Snow taught:  There is a nature of deity in the composition of our spirits.  In our spiritual birth our Father transmitted to us the capability, powers, and faculties which he himself possesses, as much so as the child on its mother's bosom possesses, although in as undeveloped state, the faculties, power and susceptibilities of its parents.

Have a HAPPY week!!!

New people in the ward!!

The Greer's have moved into the Farrell's home.  Now it's the Greer home!!  We are so glad.  They have the cutest family.  There is the mom, Lisa, the dad, Cory, and 6 cute kids.  I should say they have a couple of cute young women and the rest cute little kids. 
Natalie is 14, Alyssa is 12, Paxton (the only boy) is 10, Macey is 8, Brinley is 6 and Charlyse (Charly) is 1 1/2 months old.  We are sooooo HAPPY to have them in our ward.  We love great families that can be a big part of the success of our little ward.  YEAH!!
Then we have the St. Andre's.  Yes, they are great too.  There is Nathan, Brianna and their cute little baby girl, Lexi.  They have moved into 1530 in Sunset.  YEAH AGAIN!!!  They are great members and we are so grateful for good people moving into our ward.  We have prayed for them and they are coming. 

Great read this month!!!

The Ensign this month is full of great articles.  There is an article about Joseph Smith called Palmyra.  It is going to be a 2 part series that has some very interesting facts about his family and about himself.  Joseph Smith was very blessed to have lived to be the prophet.  The Lord protected him and his family through some pretty tough times.  

It's on page 24.  I found the information to be quite amazing.  You need to read it!!  I love to read things like this because it strengthens my testimony.  The prophet Joseph Smith, and his family were strong, stalwart, steadfast, happy-hearted, determined people that just wouldn't give up.  They could have many times. But didn't.  They choose not to. We can all take a lesson out of their book!!

Great lesson on Sunday

We had a combined Relief Society and Priesthood lesson this last Sunday.  

Bishop Farnsworth gave the lesson on Temples and the importance of the temple.  It was very good.  He had facts about the temples and we watched a video about a people who traveled over 3,000 miles to attend a temple.  They sold everything they had to get there.  They took whole families so they could be sealed.  3 days by water and 3 days by bus.  Traveling at night through the water not really knowing how it was going to turn out.  On the 3 days boat trip they ran out of water.  They gathered together and prayed for an answer.  Clouds came, it poured for several hours and then the clouds cleared.  They were able to catch enough water to sustain them for the rest of their trip.  On the bus ride they were cheered on by many people who feed them and kept them going.  It was an amazing story.  We are so blessed, or spoiled I would have to say.  Those of you, like me, that have lived here in Cedar have lived 50 miles from a temple and will soon live 5 minutes from one.  We really have no excuse not to attend.  We need to do the Lord's work!!

It was a great reminder!!!  Thanks, bishop!!!

Sad, but Happy!!

 We had a funeral on Saturday, the 30th.  Brother Banks passed away last week from a life here on earth that was filled with amazing things.  It was a pleasure to attend the funeral and hear his children tell about their dad.  A lot of the members in our ward don't know Brother Banks because him and his wife, Rae, have been home bound for quite some time.  But they were faithful members of the church their whole lives and even served 3 missions for the church here in Cedar. 

Sweet Rae told me that she really can't live without him.  They were married for 68 years,  WOW!!  I should say they have been and still are.  Good for them.  What a great example for all of us to follow.  We wish Rae and her family the best.  She said that she hopes that it will be a very short time before they are together again.  Amazing lady!! 

Flooding the Earth and our Lives with the Book of Mormon--Chapter 10, Melissa

Great lesson on Sunday---"He can't be serious!!" thought Margo Merrill...when she first heard President Ezra Taft Benson's request that parents read the Book of Mormon with their children.  'My children are only six, five, and two years old.  I'll just be wasting my time and patience.'
Brother and Sister Merrill decided to try reading the Book of Mormon with their children anyway.  When they came to the story of Nephi and his broken bow, six-year-old Melissa became ill with pneumonia.
Melissa pleaded with her mother to let her go back to school even though she was sick, Margo said, She said that if she didn't go back, her friend, Pamela--who is a member of another church, wouldn't know what happened to Nephi.  Then Melissa sobbed and slumped into my arms.  I dried her tears and suggested she call Pamela on the phone and tell her what had happened to Nephi.

1. The Book of Mormon was written for us!!  I think we sometimes forget this!!  The Nephites never had the book---The Lamanites never had the book.  It was meant for us.  Mormon wrote near the end of the Nephite civilization.  Under the inspiration of God, who sees all things from the beginning, he abridged centuries of records, choosing the stories, speeches, and events that would be most helpful to us.
2. As we study the Book of Mormon daily, the power of the book will flow into our lives.  The spirit, as well as the body, is in need of constant nourishment.  Yesterday's meal is not enough to sustain today's needs.  So also an infrequent reading of the most correct of any book on earth, as Joseph Smith called, is not enough!!!
3. We must flood the earth and our lives with the Book of Mormon.  We each need to get our own testimony of the book through the Holy Ghost.  Then we need to share!!

President Benson's vision---
Of homes alerted, of classes alive, and of pulpits aflame with the spirit of the messages.  A vision of home teachers and visiting teachers, ward and branch officers, and stake and mission leaders counseling our people out of the most correct of any book on earth--the Book of Mormon.  A vision of artists putting into film, drama, literature, music, and paintings great themes and great characters from the Book of Mormon.  A vision of missionaries going into the mission field with hundreds of passages memorized from the Book of Mormon so that they might feed the needs of a spiritually famished world.  A vision of the whole Church getting nearer to God by abiding by the precepts of the Book of Mormon.

Our challenge from President Benson:  

To prayerfully consider steps that we can personally take to bring this new witness for Christ more fully into our own lives and into a world that so desperately needs it.

Melissa did a great job.  She bore a STRONG testimony of the Book of Mormon to all of us and expressed her love for the book.  Thanks again...and we missed you if you weren't with us!!!

On the Bright Side

For years we have heard that too much sun exposure can cause skin cancer, and Utah has the highest rate of melanoma in the nation.  It makes sense to get less sun exposure in order to prevent skin cancer.  The tricky part is figuring out how to protect yourself from harm while still enjoying the amazing outdoor lifestyle offered by southern Utah, with averages of up to 300 sunny days per year.  In less than an hour in the sun the damage starts.  So...what are we to do.  We need sunshine.  Spending too much time indoors means more eating than we need.  We need sun for mood-enhancing.  Serotonin comes from sun exposure through the eyes, which helps with heart, with sleep and with vitamin supply.  So...here are some recommendations.

Just for your information:
SPF--Sun Protection Factor
UV--Ultraviolet rays (invisible energy from the sun)
UVA--aging rays
UVB--burn
ing rays

SPF 15 blocks 93% of UVB rays

SPF 30 blocks 97% of UVB rays

SPF 50 blocks 98% of UVB rays.  

NO SUNSCREEN PROTECTS 100%

Broad spectrum sunscreen protects against UVA & UVB rays

Water resistant--effective 40 minutes submerged in water

Water proof---effective 80 minutes submerged in water

SPF 30 or higher recommended for children under 6 years of age.

SLIP on a shirt, SLOP on sunscreen, SLAP on a hat, SEEK shade and SLIDE on some sunglasses!!