Women in the Scriptures

Five Things for Friday, 30th Edition

2012-01-27T01:00:00.000-08:00

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Awhile ago Cocoa of Chocolate on My Cranium asked her readers which fictional character they most identified with. I loved the question but didn't have time to respond at the time. So I am going to do it now.

I am most certainly Anne Shirley from Anne of Green Gables.

Granted I am not an orphan and I don't have red hair, but in many ways our personalities are remarkably similar. In Middle School I even once knocked a boy out with my lunch box when he teased me by making "kissy lips" at me on the school bus. Though I've definitely mellowed out as I've got older I am still an overly dramatic, romantic, ambitious Anne Shirley at heart.

I am curious... what fictional character do you think you are most like?

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A few weeks ago I finished the book "The Year My Son and I Were Born" by Kathryn Lynard Soper. It is a memoir about how her heart and life were changed by giving birth to a son with Down Syndrome. I was so touched by her perspective and I especially loved what she said towards the end of her book,

" ... 'Knowing other people are in worse pain doesn't erase your own'... And mine had been terrible. But as the pain faded, I was beginning to see how unnecessary most of it had been. Thomas's diagnosis brought some inherent difficulties, like health concerns and educations issues, but the stuff that really hurt didn't come from Down Syndrome. It came from my reaction to Down Syndrome... How much grief stemmed from my twisted belief that faster meant smarter, smarter meant better, and better meant happier? The bulk of my suffering had been self-inflicted, like when I soaked my bloody toe at Christmas time; the injury called for only a tablespoon of salt, yet I dumped in half a cup. Down Syndrome didn't need to hurt so much. Neither did depression. And for that matter, neither did motherhood.

The irony just about killed me, but I had to smile. Thomas's disability had enabled me to face my own. And his diagnosis which once seemed like a burden, had granted the sweetest relief." (pg. 303)

This is a really wonderful book and has given me so much to think about. If you get a chance to pick it up, it would be well worth your time.

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Speaking of good books I thought I'd share my all time favorite parenting book. It is called "The Wonder Weeks" and I think it has done more to help me as a mother than any other book I've read...besides the scriptures. The whole premise of the book is that babies go through mental growths spurts just like they go through physical growth spurts. Usually a few weeks before a baby makes a physical "leap" forward they also make a mental "leap" forward which is characterized by a fussy, clingy, and sleepless baby. This is a time when a baby's whole world is changing and they don't know how to cope with it yet so they cling to what is safe and familiar... mom, milk, being held, dad, etc...

This is kind of hard for adults to understand but just imagine if every few months you gained a new sense, like all of a sudden you could hear twice as far or could smell things a half mile away, it would really change your world and make it kind of a scary place. Those are the types of changes a baby goes through every few months and with which they have to learn how to cope. They are the times your baby needs you the most. The book points out several different leap periods (you can see a chart of them here) when babies make the biggest cognitive developments. The dates are based off the baby's conception date so if your baby was born "early" or "late" then the dates might be off 3-6 weeks.

This book has been so helpful because Abraham has been super fussy lately and doesn't want to nurse. I was starting to get worried about him, thinking that maybe he was sick or hurting, but then I picked up this book and realized he is right in the middle of the "world of patterns" leap and that there were things I could do to help him. Instead of getting frustrated or upset with him I am able to recognize what he is learning and enjoy watching make sense of his strange body and world. It is really helpful and is one that I wish that I'd read before I had Asher, it would have saved me a lot of grief and tears.

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Asher has been getting his Book of Mormon characters and his Winnie the Pooh characters mixed up. The other day at the library he was trying to explain to me that he really wanted the movie with Piglet, Tigger, and Nehor.

"You mean Eeyore? " I asked.

"No mom, Nehor."

I didn't realize there was an anti-Christ in the Winnie the Pooh movie. I guess I'll have to pay closer attention in the future! :)

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Thank you all so much for your kind comments on my last post. I really appreciate them. Don't worry I haven't hit the depths of despair yet, just a few hard weeks. But things seem to be looking brighter.

I wanted to fit this video into the "Nothing" post, but it just didn't seem to work, so I am posting it here. It is a video about the Hubble space telescope and the furthest into space that man has ever seen. It is really an incredible glimpse into the immensity of God's creations and makes me feel even smaller than than the "Pale Blue Dot" image does. It is mind boggling.

Oh, and you need to read this talk that Steph shared in the comments. It is called "Our Creator's Cosmos" by Elder Neal A. Maxwell and is incredible. Incredible.

Have a wonderful weekend!

If you want to link to your own "Five Things for Friday" post you can use the tool below to add your link. 1) Please link to the URL of your blog post and not your main blog and 2) Please include a link back here.

Nothing

2012-01-24T08:30:00.000-08:00

I've been feeling sort of low lately.

It seems like Satan has been working hard on me to make me feel small, worthless and hopelessly flawed.

There are days when life, and all the suffering, pain, and heartache that comes with it, seems so meaningless and I really begin to wonder why I am here on earth at all.

I recently saw this image and the reality of my own insignificance and worthlessness in the vast expanse of the universe became jarringly apparent.

This image, called "Pale Blue Dot", was taken in 1990 by the Voyager 1 spacecraft. When the spacecraft had completed its mission and was returning home NASA had it turn its camera around and take a picture of Earth. This is what Earth looks like from the edge of our solar system, 3.7 billion miles away. Just a faint blue dot.

The famous astronomer Carl Sagan shared this insight about this image:

"The earth is a very small stage in a vast cosmic arena. Think of the rivers of blood spilled by all those generals and emperors so that in glory and in triumph they could become the momentary masters of a fraction of a dot. Think of the endless cruelties visited by the inhabitants of one corner of the dot on scarcely distinguishable inhabitants of some other corner of the dot. How frequent their misunderstandings, how eager they are to kill one another, how fervent their hatreds. Our posturings, our imagined self-importance, the delusion that we have some privileged position in the universe, are challenged by this point of pale light. Our planet is a lonely speck in the great enveloping cosmic dark... It's been said that astronomy is a humbling, and I might add, a character-building experience. To my mind, there is perhaps no better demonstration of the folly of human conceits than this distant image of our tiny world. " (Pale Blue Dot: A Vision of the Human Future in Space, p. 6)

It is so humbling to look at that tiny speck floating in the solar system knowing, that on the day this picture was taken, there was a little girl named Heather living, hoping, and dreaming on it. Looking at that pale blue dot makes me see that all my ambitions, dreams, worries, and fears are just a drop in the bucket in the vast universe of God's creations, and it seems impossible that He would care about them at all. This perspective makes me cry, like Moses did after God showed him all the creations which He had made, "Now, for this cause I know that man is nothing, which thing I never had supposed." (Moses 1: 10)

The message that Satan has been pounding into me lately really is true...

I am nothing.

And all the problems, insecurities and ambitions I have are infinitely unimportant.

And yet, at the same time...

I am everything.

And all the problems, insecurities, and ambitions I have are infinitely important.

For we read in Moses 7:28-37 that God cares deeply about each and every one of His creations.

"And it came to pass that the God of heaven looked upon the residue of the people, and he wept... And Enoch said unto the Lord: How is it that thou canst weep, seeing thou art holy, and from all eternity to all eternity? And were it possible that man could number the particles of the earth, yea, millions of earths like this, it would not be a beginning to the number of thy creations; ... how is it thou canst weep?
The Lord said unto Enoch: Behold these thy brethren; they are the workmanship of mine own hands, and I gave unto them their knowledge, in the day I created them; and in the Garden of Eden, gave I unto man his agency;... but behold, they are without affection, and they hate their own blood;... and the whole heavens shall weep over them, even all the workmanship of mine hands; wherefore should not the heavens weep, seeing these shall suffer? (Moses 7:28-37)"

How incredible is it that even though I am just one, teeny tiny portion of God's creations, He loves me.

He knows me.

He cares about me.

And when I kneel down each morning and night the Master of all Creation, the Lord of the Whole Universe, listens to my prayer.

That knowledge fills me with awe and somehow makes my personal heartaches, worries, and ambitions much easier to bear. It makes me realize how silly it is to harbor feelings of anger or pride and how pointless it is to seek after the the praise and wealth of the world. God has promised that those who "overcome the world" and serve Him will inherit all that He possesses, which is something that our mortal minds can not even begin to fathom. It is glory, power and joy beyond our wildest imaginations.

"For behold, this is my work and my glory—to bring to pass the immorality and eternal life of man." (Moses 1:39)

I truly am nothing amidst the glory of God's infinite creations but I have the potential to be everything.

And knowing that makes my life meaningful, even when Satan tries to convince me otherwise.

Don't Wait!

2012-01-23T19:07:00.000-08:00

Our book "The Gift of Giving Life: Rediscovering the Divine Nature of Pregnancy and Birth" is coming out in print soon! We initially thought it would come out in November but the layout and editing took longer than expected. Right now it is looking like it will be off the press sometime in March!

This means that our pre-sales aren't going to last much longer and the 10% discount you get for ordering the book early will be ending really soon. So, if you are planning on buying a copy of the book sometime in the near or distant future (which I know many of you are) I'd HIGHLY recommend doing it sooner rather than later. They probably won't be discounted again any time soon.

And trust me if you are, ever have been, or ever will be pregnant or if you have a friend or spouse who is, has been or will be pregnant you don't want to miss out on this book... it is really quite incredible collection of stories and testimonies. If you'd like to read some excerpts from the book or learn more about our project you can visit our website.

Go order your discounted copy now before it is too late!

Five Things For Friday, 29th Edition

2012-01-20T01:00:00.000-08:00

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It is that time of year again, when people start looking for ideas for their Relief Society Birthday parties! I thought that since I have some new readers since last year that I'd share the links to the two scripts that I have written. The first is a re-enactment of the First Relief Society Meeting. I went to the church history museum in Salt Lake City and transcribed Eliza R. Snow's notes from the Relief Society ledger and then wrote up a re-enactment based on her notes. We did it two years ago in my ward and it was really incredible. Here is me dressed up like Emma.

Also, last year I wrote a script about the 15 Women Who Have Led the Relief Society, which is a program with a brief introduction to each of the General Relief Society Presidents. It is really touching and so easy to put together. You are welcome to use my scripts and if you perform them I'd love to see pictures!

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Last week was my first time back to modern dance in 6 months. I wasn't able to dance with the modern dance company I usually dance with because my hips were so bad the last few months of my pregnancy that I couldn't walk very easily... let alone leap! So it was really wonderful to go back and move my body for a few hours. I've been much more happier and "with it" the past week, and I think it has a lot to do with going back to dance. I was telling Jon that I think that I've been living in my in head too much lately, being so focused on (and stressed) about all the tasks and things I need to get done, that I've been really disconnected from my body. It has been so nice to have a few hours each week that I can just focus on "getting my head back into my body" and feeling a little more like a living soul than a disembodied spirit. I really need that right now.

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I've been in charge of the posts for The Gift of Giving Life blog this week and there were some really good posts this week.

On Monday I shared a guest post called "The Gift of Eve" by Jeanna Stay which I absolutely loved. She said:

Eve began her life in the Garden of Eden. She knew what it was to have no pain, no hunger, no struggle. And then she left that Garden to bear children and to bless the earth with her seed. At first glance, I would think, “Wow, I bet she missed Eden (especially during hour #16 of labor).” I think we often believe the state in the Garden was better, nicer, happier. And yet, do you know what she testified?

And Eve, [Adam’s] wife … was glad, saying: Were it not for our transgression we never should have had seed, and never should have known good and evil, and the joy of our redemption, and the eternal life which God giveth unto all the obedient. And Adam and Eve blessed the name of God, and they made all things known unto their sons and their daughters. (Moses 5:11–12)

She knew them both. She knew the Garden and she knew mortality. And she preferred mortality. She blessed God for giving it to her. And in doing so, she blessed all of us. Eve’s gift is more than just the life she gave her posterity. Eve’s gift is the joy she found in doing so. It is her example of courage in the face of the unknown. It is a testimony that, even when life is hard (and it so often is), mortality is a gift so great that she rejoiced in it and praised God.

Wednesday I shared a post I wrote called "The Song of the Soul: Singing to Your Baby":

Over the years I’ve pondered a lot about why that song is so special to me but I haven’t ever been able to explain it. Then a few weeks ago a good friend sent me this quote by N’Shama Sterling. She said:

“When a woman in a certain African tribe knows she is pregnant, she goes out into the wilderness with a few friends and together they pray and meditate until they hear the song of the child. They recognize that every soul has its own vibration that expresses its unique flavor and purpose. When the women attune to the song, they sing it out loud. They then return to the tribe and teach the song of the child to the village.
When the child is born, the community gathers and sings the child’s song to him or her. Later, when the child enters education,

And today I shared Shuana's (one of my modern dance friends from BYU) birth story entitled "After the Trial of My Faith"

It was no great miracle, but it was miraculous to me. I went to bed Sunday night thinking there was no way we could birth at the birth center. Monday morning I awoke essentially in labor, and Heavenly Father put the best midwife in my path to make my desires possible. I don’t think the location of my child’s birth is eternally significant. What is eternally significant to me is that I now know that I am capable of exercising my faith and calling down the powers of heaven to help me and my family.
And I learned that lesson in the most beautiful way, through birth.

Hop on over and check them out!

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I want this book.

Really bad.

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I know that this post has been making the rounds on Facebook but I loved it so much that I just thought I'd share it in case you missed it. It made me laugh on a hard day when I really needed to laugh. And I am seriously thinking about hanging these words of wisdom on my fridge, just as a reminder,

"Carry on Warrior, only six hours till bedtime."

Amen!

Sending you all my love and hoping that you have a wonderful weekend!

If you want to link to your own "Five Things for Friday" post you can use the tool below to add your link. 1) Please link to the URL of your blog post and not your main blog and 2) Please include a link back here.

Widow of Nain

2012-01-17T07:51:00.000-08:00

The Resurrection of the Widow's Son at Nain,
Illustration from 'The Life of Our Lord Jesus Christ' by James Jacques Joseph Tissot

Luke 7:11-17

Background:

Jesus was traveling around Galilee with his disciples teaching and working miracles. He had entered into Capernum where he was sought out by a "certain centurion" whose beloved servant was on the verge of death. He asked Christ to heal him, but would not let him enter into the house saying "but that say in a word, and my servant shall be healed." (Luke 6:7). Christ was astounded by his faith and the servant was healed, without Christ ever seeing or touching him. After performing this miracle the next day Christ and his disciples traveled to Nain (Luke 6: 10).

Facts About Her:

She lived in Nain, a village in Galilee about 9 miles from Nazareth (vs.11);

She was a widow (vs. 12);

She had only one son, a young man, who had recently died. As she and "much people of the city" were taking her son out of the city on a funeral bier Christ saw her and "he had compassion on her, and said unto her, Weep not." (vs. 12-13);

Christ touched the bier and the men holding it stood still. Christ then commanded, " Young man, I say unto thee, Arise" and the woman's son arose from the dead and was "delivered" to his mother (vs. 14-15);

After this miracle the people were afraid and declared, "That a great prophet is risen up among us" and they spread news of Christ and the miracle he had done "throughout all Judæa, and throughout all the region round about." (vs. 17)

Speculations About Her:

Nain is about 9 miles from Nazareth, the city where Christ grew up. In fact because Narezeth is higher in elevation one could (and possibly still could) actually see Nain from Nazareth if one looked to the southeast. In view of how close these two cities are to each other it makes me wonder if perhaps Jesus may have known this woman and her son before he saw them at the city gates. Such a thing is very possible and adds a new dimension to the story.

In Jewish custom the dead were prepared for burial and buried very soon after death. In "Jesus and the Ossuaries: First-Century Jewish Burial Practices and the Lost Tomb of Jesus,” the authors explain that:

"When a person breathed the last breath and the heart stopped beating, the eyes of the deceased were reverentially closed, the entire body was washed and anointed with oil, and the hands and feet were then wrapped in linen bands. The body, clothed in a favorite garment, was then wrapped with winding sheets. Spices of myrrh and aloes were placed in the folds of the garment to perfume the body. A napkin was then bound from the chin to the head. The family took the body on a bier to be buried within hours of death, not days. During the first century, many people were laid to rest in rock-hewn tombs, one of the most prominent features of the hill country of Galilee and Judea; others were buried in the ground."

We don't know if this young man's death was the result of long drawn out illness or an unexpected accident, but no matter how he died it is likely that his mother's grief was fresh, very fresh. She may have only had several hours to process the fact that her only son was dead and all the implications that came along with his death. The newness of her grief makes Christ's tender words " weep not" all the more powerful. He was telling her that even though her grief seemed unbearable she wouldn't have to mourn much longer because she would soon have her son again.

As a widow with no male heir to take care of her this woman's plight would have been hard indeed. Women had very few political rights in New Testament times and she probably would not have inherited much or been able to provide well for herself. Most likely she would have been at the mercy of other people's charity for the rest of her life. And seeing that her son was a "young man" that probably would have been a long time for her.

Mario Minniti, Miracle at Nain (1620)

My Thoughts:

I've been pondering a lot about the meaning of the word "compassion" and why, in many of the New Testament stories, Christ is "moved with compassion" to perform a miracle for someone. As I was studying compassion I found that compassion is not the same thing as pity, sympathy or empathy. One of the big differences is that while pity and sympathy are things that you feel, compassion is something that you do. Compassion is often linked to the word mercy and used to describe the motivation behind great acts of charity and love like the Atonement. In fact, the outward expression of charity is compassion.

It is interesting that throughout the scriptures Christ often says that his "bowels are filled with compassion" (John 3:17; D&C 101:9; 3 Ne. 17:6) towards His children. The word "bowels" in the original New Testament Greek is σπλάγχνα (splágxnon) and refers to organs of the body like the heart, lungs, intestines and the womb. All these are all parts of the body that swell and then must expel something to keep functioning properly. So when Christ says that His bowels are filled or moved with compassion he is saying that His great love, His charity, for His children compels Him to bless them, heal them and save them.

Compassion is charity in action.

The other thing I love about this woman's story is that it is a profound testimony of Christ's love and compassion towards women. In fact, in all four accounts we have of Jesus raising someone from the dead all of them are done in the presence of, and usually on the behalf of, women.

The raising of the daughter of Jairus was not only performed on a woman (a girl really) but the only people there to witness it was the girl's father and mother and two of the apostles (Luke 8:41-56).

The raising of Lazarus from the dead was done in the presence of only a few, mainly Mary and Martha, and was done mostly on their behalf (John 12).

When Christ rose from his grave his first witness was Mary Magdalene and the other women who came to prepare his body for burial.

The raising of the son of the widow of Nain from the dead was done in the presence of many men and women but was on done because Christ had compassion on a woman.

Raising a person from the dead is an incredible miracle for anyone to witness, but it has special meaning for women. Christ is demonstrating to women that he has power over the grave. Giving them a living testimony that through him and by him all the children that women bear and nurture on this earth will live again. No sacrifice that women make to bring forth a child, to nurture a friend, or to love a family member will be in vain, because Christ will be (and is) victorious over death.

Questions to Think About:

Why were "much of the people of the city" with her as she buried her son? What type of people do you think she and her son were to have so many people mourn with them?

Do you have a widow in your life (young or old) who needs remembering? What special challenges does she face? How can you follow the example of the Savior and be moved with compassion towards her?

Can you relate to this woman's grief? How do you image she felt when she saw her son raised from his death bed? How does her story help you better understand the power of the atonement and the resurrection?

What special significance does the term "compassionate service", which is often used to describe the work the Relief Society does, have seeing that the motto of the Relief Society is "Charity Never Faileth"?

Latter-day Saint Women Around the World: Odette from Germany

2012-01-15T13:00:00.000-08:00

I am excited to introduce Odette from Germany today as my guest poster for my Latter-day Saint Women Around the World series. One of my best friends is also from Germany and we met when she was foreign exchange student here in the US almost 12 years ago, so I really loved reading Odette's story. Her conversion story is really inspiring to me.

Hi, I am Odette. I grew up in a town called Rostock in the North-East of Germany right by the Baltic Sea. Its a rather small city with about 200.00 people. We moved into a small village about 30 minutes away from Rostock when I was 6, so I am kind of a country girl. I love animals and horseback riding. I am an only child and because my dad is a seaman, me and my mom were alone most of the time. My family is not religious and so I never even thought about God before I went to the USA for a year as an exchange student. After a few difficulties with my host family I ended up in Logan, Utah with a nice Mormon family. When I think back, I see God's hand in all of this. All the sudden I had 4 siblings, parents and a so-called normal family life. It was a big change for me but it helped me to find my way to God. I am currently living in Greifswald, Germany with my husband Ronny and our baby girl Amélie-Sophie. I am a stay-at-home mom and love to spend time with my little girl and watch her grow up.

Me, my mom and my American family on top of the conference center. ( Taken in 2006)

What is the dominate belief system in your country?

In Germany about 60% consider themselves as Christians ( 30% Catholic 29 % Protestants and 1% smaller denominations) , which does not mean they go to church. Because we have lots of immigrants from Turkey, Islam is considered the second largest religion (about 4 %). Other smaller religions are Buddhism, Jewish, and about 34% consider themselves not religious. Most only go to church twice a year. In my perspective its only the older people that go to church regularly. It also depends on the part of the country. Here in the North-East not many believe in God anymore because of the 40 years of communist rule. Only restaurants are open on Sunday. But they are starting to have a “Shopping-Sunday” where all the stores are open once a month.

How long have you been a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints?

I first got to know the church in Utah when I was 16. I lived with a Mormon family and basically learned everything from them. They showed me how prayer works, had Family Home Evening with me and invited me to come to church with them. In the beginning I just stayed at home because I kind of enjoyed to have some quiet time alone. My host sister Kimberli took me to Young Women's activities and I soon started to find friends there. So I started going to church just for Young Women´s and then my little brother Cameron asked me why I did not want to stay for sacrament meeting. He told me how good it was and about the spirit he felt there. So I stayed and I soon realized what he meant. I felt the warm spirit and God's love for me, just pouring over me. I will never forget this feeling. I have been a church-goer ever since. I got to know the gospel and found a way to understand the scriptures even though it was not in my mother-tongue. After about 6 months I felt ready. I had been thinking about baptism a lot and I had prayed a lot and knew it was true. Everyone was so excited when they heard my news that I wanted to get baptized. My parents in Germany did not approve and thought this was just a phase I was going through, so I did not get their permission. It was a big challenge for my faith and patience. I had to wait till I was 18 and could decide for myself.

So after a year I went back to Germany and was all the sudden alone, trying to live by what I knew was right. It was hard but two angels ( aka. missionaries) were sent my way to help me through this. I had to start over and learn all about the gospel in German. They taught me, they were friends, and even kind of brothers. After my 18th birthday I finally got baptized on April 14th, 2007 in the Baltic sea on a beautiful sunny day. Since then I have grown in many ways. My testimony has become stronger and even more powerful. I started a family of my own with a nice Mormon man and continue to count my many blessings every day.

What is the LDS church attendance like in your area?

Our area is kind of rural with not many people. Our district consists of 6 branches. There are no stakes or wards in our area. Our branch is a combined branch out of two groups (Stralsund & Greifswald) and one branch (Wolgast). Currently we have an attendance of about 40-50 members every Sunday. Because we are combined out of three bigger cities, some members have to travel for a long distance to come to church. I think the furthest has to travel for almost 2 hours to get to church. Since we have lots of older members they have organized to share a car. So sometimes they travel for hours to pick everyone up and then 1-2 hours to get to church. We are lucky enough to have the branch in our city, so we get there in 10-15 minutes. We have lots of new converts and some families who have been in the church since 1930. Our ward consists of 4 big families with children. Three of them started out from our oldest member. He is almost 90 and had a big family with 6 children. Two of them are still in our branch and their children have families of their own here too. But we also have quite a few older single women and some young converts. We have more men in our branch and right now up to 10 children.

How far away is the nearest temple?

( Me and Amélie-Sophie in front of the Freiberg temple October 2011)

The nearest temple would be in Kopenhagen, Denmark. Its about 2-3 hours by ship. But we go to the Freiberg, Germany Temple. Its about 5 hours away by car. It is a miracle for the members in East-Germany. It was built during the Communistic regime in the DDR and dedicated in 1985. It was pretty busy because there were only two temples in Europe at that time. Not many people know about it in Germany but in Freiberg its pretty well known and kind of the town's landmark. It was re-dedicated 2002 and it now also serves those in Poland, the Czech Republic, and Hungary, and, before the Kyiv Ukraine Temple's 2010 dedication, Russia and Ukraine. Since then its not as busy as it used to be, but its always special to be there. Its the place where I received my endowment, was sealed to my husband and did lots of ordinances for my ancestors. I love the temple and I feel so much peace when I am able to be there. We try to be there at least twice a year. I am currently the only member in my family ( except my husband and baby) and so I am really trying to do my genealogy work. I have really seen many blessings doing so.

What sort of reaction do you get from most people when they find out you are Mormon?

I am still kind of shy about my religion. I really try to be a better missionary but its hard. Whenever they find out they are pretty surprised. Most only know about plural marriage but they are pretty open to my experiences. They think its brave to live as a religious person nowadays. Mostly they are pretty accepting. My family has gotten used to it even though they are not really interested in it.

How is missionary work in your country?

Its pretty hard to do missionary work but it has gotten better since President Uchtdorf dedicated the country for missionary work. Our area is still feeling the effects of the communistic times, so many people have hard feelings with God. We usually have about 5-10 baptisms every year. I think Germany in general is having a good number of baptisms but our area is still a little behind in the means of growth in the church. The missionaries have a huge area to cover and no vehicle to go to the small villages. Lots of new converts are usually young single adults.

How many families do you know (LDS or not) who have more than two children?

I think most families in Germany only have 2 children. Its unusual if you see a bigger family. In the church we have lots of families with more than 4-6 children.

How many sisters do you visit teach?

I currently have 4 sisters on my teaching-list. They are all inactive and most of them don't want us to visit. So its hard to visit teach. We mostly write letters. One time when I went to visit a sister, she was so happy because she had prayed for someone to come by. I just had a feeling to go by on that sister and see how she was doing. I was so glad I followed the promptings of the spirit and to help her see God´s love for her and that her prayers will be answered.

What are the greatest challenges the sisters in your Relief Society are facing?

I think the greatest challenge is to teach Relief Society when sisters are so different in their knowledge and testimony about the gospel. We have a variety, from a member for 50 years to a member for 2 weeks. Its hard to answer deep doctrine questions and to not confuse new converts at the same time. We don´t have many sisters in our Relief Society because most of our sisters are serving in other callings in Primary and Young Woman, so that makes it hard to have good discussions and lessons.

What is the greatest blessing that the gospel of Jesus Christ has brought into your life?

The greatest blessing is to know and feel Gods love for me and to feel his guidance and help in my life. I am glad I can know that I can be with my family forever and I know what plans God has in store for me. I understand my purpose on this earth. It simply makes me happy and that is all that matters.

Thank you so much Odette! What a blessing for your little girl that you've made the choices you have.

Five Things For Friday, 28th Edition

2012-01-13T01:00:00.000-08:00

-1-

The other morning I was upstairs getting ready when I heard peals of giggles coming from downstairs. I'd left Asher and Rose down there while I showered and got dressed and the whole time I'd been getting ready I had this sinking suspicion that they were up to something. And boy was I right. When I finally came down I discovered that they had gotten into the flour bucket and had covered the whole family room in flour. It was everywhere. On the chair, in their toys, on the computer, in the closet, all over the pile of clean clothes I'd just folded, on my sewing machine, in the baby's swing (luckily I'd taken him up stairs with me) and the whole floor was covered with a white layer.

I was in shock. I couldn't believe what they had done in the 15 minutes I'd been upstairs. I am really proud of myself because I didn't scream and I didn't spank anyone, even though I really wanted to, but I did rampage around the house like a madwoman and put just about every toy they owned in time out. Later, Jon told me about this YouTube video that went viral a few months ago where two little boys did just about the same thing! And watching it made me feel better, because my kids didn't make nearly as big a mess as these two little boys did.

Still, I wish I'd been as calm and collected this mom was and instead of being so angry like I was. Because really it was pretty funny... after the fact.

-2-

I was excited to see that the 1828 Websters' Dictionary of the American Language is online! One of the best scripture study tips I was ever taught was to, when I came across a word in the Bible I didn't fully understand, to look up the meaning of word in an old dictionary. My seminary teacher explained that over the last 400 years the English language has under gone a lot of changes. Words that you think you understand the meaning of may actually have had a much different usage at the time the Bible was translated. It is really amazing how looking up words, even that you think you know the meaning of, can really deepen your understanding of the scriptures. I've never had access to a dictionary this old before and so I am super excited to have such easy access to it.

The other great thing about the 1828 version of the dictionary is that Noah Webster often referenced scriptures in his definitions and always favored the Biblical explanation of concepts over the secular ones. For example, the first entry in the word "Love" is:

1. In a general sense to be pleased with; to regard with affection, on account of some qualities which excite pleasing sensations or desire of gratification. We love a friend, on account of some qualities which give us pleasure in his society. We love a man who has done us a favor; in which case, gratitude enters into the composition of our affection. We love our parents and our children, on account of their connection with us, and on account of many qualities which please us. We love to retire to a cool shade in summer. We love a warm room in winter. we love to hear an eloquent advocate. The christian loves his Bible. In short, we love whatever gives us pleasure and delight, whether animal or intellectual; and if our hearts are right, we love God above all things, as the sum of all excellence and all the attributes which can communicate happiness to intelligent beings. In other words, the christian loves God with the love of complacency in his attributes, the love of benevolence towards the interest of his kingdom, and the love of gratitude for favors received.
Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind - Thou shalt love thy neighbor as thyself. Matt. 22.

It really is a great tool for scripture study. I'd love to have a copy of this dictionary in hard print one of these days (but it is $60!) or even better if they'd make an iPad app for it!

-3-

Speaking of scriptures I just got a new set of scriptures for Christmas, which I really needed because this is what my old scriptures look like

They were falling apart in pieces and it is nice to have a new higher quality set. But it is so hard to transition over to new set of scriptures because I have put so much of my heart and testimony into my old set. When I pick them up it is like holding an old friend. My new scriptures on the other hand feel like strangers. When I mark or write in them I feel sort of guilty. But hopefully as I start studying and using them they will become as beloved (and useful) as my old ones are.

Last week in church this poem called "New and Used" by A. Jonathan Vance was printed on the front of the program and it captures how I feel about my old scripture perfectly.

When I peeled away the plastic,
The cover was smooth and clean.
The pages were crisp, like an apple,
And the gilded edges gleamed.
The binding crackled as
I opened the pages;
The first breath of a babe
Waking up from the ages.
The magnificent tome was unblemished.
And wouldn't be useful till tarnished.
Years later,
The cover was battered,
And within it,
The pages were tattered.
Anyone leaf
Would meet your gaze
With a flood of colors
Like the map to a maze.
Each little nugget
I'd found on my quest,
Had been marked and noted,
Then put to the test.
This book had a price, years ago.
Its value now? You cannot know.

-4-

None of my pants fit me. I'd forgotten that it takes several months after having a baby before my body gets back down to its normal size (hopefully). So to make myself feel better about myself, and a little less like an overstuffed potato, I've been wearing skirts a lot the last few weeks. I've never been a big skirt wearer but I've discovered that I really like wearing skirts! It came as a surprise to me and as I've tried to figure it out here is what I've come up with for why I like wearing skirts. 1st, with a pair on tights (not nylons) on under my skirt my legs actually stay warmer than in pants, even if my skirt is short. It is magic. 2nd, wearing a skirt makes me feel different. Its not just feeling more feminine (which it does) but it is also seems to give a simple elegance to even the most mundane tasks. Somehow it seems to make vacuuming up 5lbs of flour off my floor seem much more glamorous than it really is. 3rd, people (especially men) treat me differently when I am wearing a skirt, or at least I think they do. I'm not sure if this is all in my head but all I can say is that wearing a skirt everyday does something to me, even though I'm not quite sure what that something is... yet.

Any other skirt wearers out there know what I am talking about?

Or am I just a wee bit crazy?

Because that is totally a possibility.

-5-

And I promise that one of these days, in the not so distant future, that I will post about a woman from the scriptures! I realize that a new comer to my blog might wonder why in the world I call my blog "Women in the Scriptures" when it has been a good 2 months since I've actually wrote about a woman from the scriptures. So hang in there, I have one in the works and will try to get her posted soon.

Have a wonderful weekend!

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Taking the Challenge

2012-01-10T16:27:00.000-08:00

For the last two years I've issued my "Women in the Scriptures Challenge" at the beginning of the year and I am going to do it again this year... and probably for the rest of the time I write this blog. I think it is a really important way for followers of Christ to study their scriptures... male and female.

The full challenge is to read through the complete standard works and keep a list of all the women you find mentioned. The half challenge is to read through one volume of scripture and keep a list of the women you find mentioned. I am certain that what you discover will surprise you! Read here for all the details of the challenge.

If you've already completed the challenge, either the full or the half, you can put this gold star to put on your blog! Or print it out and stick on your fridge if that works better for you :)

I know that many of you have committed to doing the challenge this year and I'd LOVE to know about how the experience was for you, what you learned or what you discovered this year. So if you have done the challenge (even a little bit of it) please comment and/or link to a post you've written about your experience and insights. You might just inspire someone else to take the challenge.

And if you started doing the challenge and haven't finished it yet-- don't give up-- you have another year, or another or another until you get it done. It isn't something you have to rush through. And in fact you can even do the challenge two or three times if you want. Trust me, it never gets old.

Latter-day Saint Women Around the World: Suzan from Kenya

2012-01-09T01:00:00.000-08:00

Today's guest post for my series on Latter-day Saint Women Around the World is by Suzan from Kenya!

I am Suzan and am from a family of twelve, some of which are deceased. I am from Nairobi, Kenya.

1. What is the dominate belief system in your country? Do most people consider themselves to be "religious"? Are business and stores closed on Sunday? Do most people attend church?

Kenyans are religious people and so most of us consider ourselves religious. I think it is among the countries with too many churches. Very few businesses and stores are closed on Sunday. Most people attend church and even those who don't, or rather don't attend most of the time, have a church where they belong.

2. How long have you been a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints? If you are a convert please tell us a little about your conversion. If you were born in the church tell us a bit about your family and who was the first in your family to join the church.

I have been a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints for six years. My conversion story is bit long but I will try to make it short. I first saw the Book of Mormon nine years before I joined the church and it was written in French, which I could not understand. I had no one to read it to me so I ended up locking it in my drawer and I would take it out and just look at it. After nine years I was blessed to see it for the first time written in English when I visited the church and was at the same time pleased to receive my own copy, now in English. When I read it I felt the truthfulness of it and I didn't want to stop reading it. I then started the lessons with the missionaries and after two weeks I was in for the baptism. Just as I prayed the first time to know if the Church and the Book of Mormon were true I still know for sure that this is the true Church of God upon the face of the earth, and that Joseph Smith was called of God to restore the Church of Jesus Christ, and that we have a living prophet today.

3. What is the LDS church attendance like in your area?

In new branches I would say that the church is growing so fast but the same does not apply to some wards .We have 1 Stake, 7 Wards and around 11 branches in Kenya. An average church attendance is about 50. Those of whom we say travel far spend about an hour to reach the church, though those in the villages might spend 2 hours. We more single adults than married and I also think that the women are more than men.

4. How far away is the nearest temple? When was it built? How busy is it? Do most people in your country know about it? What are their feelings about it?

The nearest Temple is in South Africa which was dedicated on August 24 1985 and it is busy because it serves both the Southern and Eastern African countries. Not many know about it but members of the church does and love being in the temple.

5. What sort of reaction do you get from most people when they find out you are Mormon? Are people familiar with the church? Do you often have to defend or explain your beliefs?

The reaction of people is not all that good because the church has had a bad name in Kenya. They say we are cult and not so many know about it because there are many churches in Kenya. Yes, we often do [defend our beliefs] and this helps people in know and understand about the church.

6. How is missionary work in your country? Would you say that it is difficult or easy for missionaries to find people to teach? How often do you have a new baptism? What are the greatest barriers to missionary work in your country?

Missionary work is not so easy and baptisms are after every month or even two. I think the greatest barrier in missionary work is the formation of many churches and polygamy which Kenyans practice a lot.

7. How many families do you know (LDS or not) who have more than two children? If a family with four children moved to your area, would their family size seem unusual? What about a family with six children?

Many families have more than two children and it is normal to have a family of whichever size you want, and even if a family of 12 move to any neighborhood it would still be OK because there are many polygamous families in the country.

8. How many sisters do you visit teach? Do you have to travel far to reach them? What have been some of your best visiting teaching experiences?

I visit teach six sisters and yes to some I have to travel a long distance. Some of my best experiences are when I teach and feel the bond between me and those I teach. The greatest experience was when I visited a new convert and listened to her testimony.

9. What are the greatest challenges the sisters in your Relief Society are facing?

Long distances visiting teaching and the unavailability of those you are assigned to visit.

10. What is the greatest blessing that the gospel of Jesus Christ has brought into your life?

It is a blessing to know that if I do my part I will be able to be with my family members for eternity. The knowledge the gospel offers to me is a great blessing.

Thank you so much Suzan! I loved reading your conversion story and am so glad that you finally got a copy of the Book of Mormon in English!

Five Things for Friday, Greatest Hits of 2011 Edition

2012-01-06T01:00:00.000-08:00

I've seen several other bloggers do a review of their "greatest hits" of 2011 and I thought it would be fun to do that for my Five Things for Friday today. I am adding a little snippet of each to jog your memory or to entice to you to go back and read it if you missed it.

My most viewed posts of 2011 were:

#1 Getting Adam to Partake

"I do understand that not all men and women in the Middle East understand the veil like this and that in many places it is used as a symbol of oppression and disregard for women's rights and voices. Even in Jordan there were various degrees of veiling and some of them were obviously done out of force and oppression. Yet, I'd say that many of the young Muslim women I associated with who wore the hijab wore it for reasons similar to my two friends. It was a really life changing experience for me to be surrounded day in and day out by women who were so outwardly committed to their religion and their promises to God. I realized that my Muslim friends understood something that, at that time in my life, I was only beginning to comprehend. They knew that because they were women they had real POWER housed within their souls. . They knew that they had the power to love men and to attract them to them-- hopefully for life. They knew that within their bodies lay the ability to bestow life and that how they chose to use that power would affect future generations. They fully comprehended the importance and divinity of that power and as a result they protected it and refused to misuse it. "

#2 LDS Church's Stance on Tubal Ligations, Vasectomies, and Hysterectomies

"A few weeks ago I finished writing the family planning section for the book I am working on. In preparation for it I did a lot of research on the LDS church's teachings on birth control and family planning. I rounded up dozens and dozens of quotes from church leaders throughout the years. It was an eye opening experience for me and has really changed the way I view my family. One of the things I learned that I wasn't aware of before is the church's stance on sterilization as a form of birth control (this includes tubal ligation, vasectomies, and hysterectomies performed for non-medical reasons).

In the 2010 Church Handbook of Instructions (which has recently been put online) it says this about surgical sterilization as a form of birth control:
"The Church strongly discourages surgical sterilization as an elective form of birth control. It should be considered only if 1) medical conditions seriously jeopardize life or health or 2) birth defects or serious trauma have rendered a person mentally incompetent and not responsible for his or her actions. Such conditions must be determined by competent medical judgement and in accordance with law. Even then, the persons responsible for this decision should consult with each other and with their bishop and should receive divine confirmation of their decision through prayer. " Source
I also found that many leaders have made strong statements and warnings about sterilization and birth control. Here are just a few of the ones I found..."

# 3 The Barbie Dilemma

"I'd never really thought about the message that Barbie dolls send young girls about what it means to be a teenager and what it means to be an adult woman. Yet as I really began to think about it I realized that Barbie sends the exact opposite message about womanhood and femininity than the one I want my daughter learning. Barbie teaches that how you dress determines your worth, that sexual appeal is what is valuable in a woman, that a relationship with "Ken" is the most important thing and that babies and family are afterthoughts, that breast are for appearances and not for function (her breasts have no nipples, so obviously there is no breastfeeding going on there!), and that shopping is the answer to all of life's woes.

She really isn't a very good role model.

And yet... I still really love her."

#4 Due Date

"As I've read women's stories for our book, The Gift of Giving Life, I've seen that lots of women have different perspectives on miscarriages and what happens to the baby. Some women feel certain that the baby they miscarried, even if it was as early as 5 or 6 weeks, is still their baby and that those few weeks were all the mortal experience it needed. Other women wrote that they felt like the baby they had miscarried had chosen not to accept the body that was forming (perhaps because of birth defects) but would come back to them later as one of their other children or even a grandchild. And hands down, all the women who had had stillborn babies or babies born after 20 weeks wrote that they knew for certain that their baby was waiting for them in the next life.

As I've been reading these women stories my own heart started to ache a little bit. Where does my 12 week miscarried baby fit in?"

#5 This is the Type of "Feminist" I Am

"We live in a world where women are starving for meaning, freedom and purpose in their lives but are looking for it in all the wrong places. They see the symptoms of the disease and assume they must be the cause. They spend all their time focusing on curing the symptoms, wondering why they never seem to be making a difference, when the real culprit-- the disintegration of the family as a societal goal-- sinks further and further into the abyss and the world gets sicker and sicker. What we need in this world is not more governments or private programs what we need is a huge re-evaluation of our goals as a society. We need to re-focus on the family and once again make it the fundamental unit of society. We need men and women to come back home. We need them to rediscover the value of children and their responsibility to perpetuate life. We need them to realize that as the world moves further and further away from the family that true gender equality and true "empowerment" for women is impossible."

Thanks for all your love and supports (and comments) this year! I very much appreciate them and hope that 2012 is as good as 2011 was!

What was your favorite post on my blog this year?

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The Marriage of the Penguins

2012-01-03T18:30:00.000-08:00

We finally put away our Christmas decorations today, and with how crazy life has been around here lately I am just impressed that they got taken down before July!

As I was packing things up in boxes I remembered that all month I've been thinking about these two little penguins, which have been standing on my bookcase, and what they symbolize.

When Jon and I were engaged we went to the theater to see the film "March of the Penguins." The film is about the migration and mating patterns of emperor penguins. Emperor penguins are unique because it is the male penguin who sits on the egg instead of the female penguin. In fact, male and female emperor penguins really have quite a remarkable partnership.

Every year the penguins make a mass migration to the part of the iceberg where the ice is the thickest and begin the process of selecting their mate for that year. The process takes them several weeks, even though they don't have much time until the weather becomes hostile. Still, they take the time to select a good mate because they know that if their partnership fails then it means that there will be no new life that year. The survival of their species depends on successful male-female partnerships.

Once the female has laid the egg she transfers the egg to the father, who sits on it while the mother makes a treacherous trek of several hundred miles to the ocean in order to get the food that she and her chick will need to survive the winter. While the mothers are gone the fathers huddle together to shield their eggs from the incredibly harsh winter winds. When the egg hatches the father regurgitates a meal (even though he himself hasn't eaten for months) that he has been storing in a special "pouch" to give the chick the nourishment it needs to survive until the mother can get back.

If the mother doesn't return (because she got eaten by a seal or died on the trek) then the father has to abandon the chick, who will die in the cold, in order to return to the sea to get the nourishment he needs. He knows he can't provide what the chick needs all by himself. If the mother does return then she and the father will spend the next several months taking turns caring for the chick while the other one makes the trek to the sea for food (which gets shorter as the season progresses). Eventually the chick will be old enough to take care of itself and the father and mother return to the sea to eat until it is time to do the same thing again the next year. It is really inspiring to watch these penguins work together.

Jon and I bought our little penguin statuettes as part of our wedding decorations and had them placed next to our guest registry during our reception. I am sure that our guests thought they were a bit strange (we didn't tell anyone what they were for) but Jon and I wanted to remind ourselves of the counsel given in "The Family: A Proclamation to the World" which says,

" By divine design, fathers are to preside over their families in love and righteousness and are responsible to provide the necessities of life and protection for their families. Mothers are primarily responsible for the nurture of their children. In these sacred responsibilities, fathers and mothers are obligated to help one another as equal partners." (emphasis added)

We wanted to make the formation of a successful and thriving family our highest priority, even above personal aspirations and goals, and we wanted to work as equal partners to accomplish it.

In our marriage we've tried really hard to remember that even though one of us may be leaving the family in order to make an arduous and dangerous trek to the sea for food, while the other stays behind to endure sub-zero temperatures and starvation to incubate the egg (or vice-versa) that in the end we are both working towards the same goal.

And every year at Christmas time we pull out our little penguins to remind us that the promise of continuing life, whether for penguins or for humans, depends on successful marriages.

Latter-day Saint Women Around the World: Ayanda from Johannesburg, South Africa

2012-01-02T01:00:00.000-08:00

My guest post today is from Ayanda from Johannesburg, South Africa. I was so touched by her beautiful testimony and am so excited by how much the church is growing in her area. It is so beautiful to see how much the Lord loves all his children!

My name is Ayanda. I live in Johannesburg South Africa. I've been married for almost 8 months and I am very happy. Most of my family are members of the Church but my husband is the only member in his family.

1. What is the dominate belief system in your country? Do most people consider themselves to be "religious"? Are business and stores closed on Sunday? Do most people attend church?

Most South Africans are Christian and they tend to like attending Pentecostal churches (The ones that clap hands etc.) because those churches don't have strict principles to live by. All that's required is for one to come to church on Sunday and they can do anything else. They can drink and still be as worldly as they would like to be. Most people consider themselves religious and they attend church but they kind of have their feet on both sides. They believe that going to church justifies their other wrong doings.

2. How long have you been a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints? If you are a convert please tell us a little about your conversion. If you were born in the church tell us a bit about your family and who was the first in your family to join the church.

I was raised in the church. My grandmother was taught by the missionaries in the late 80s. She was a mother of 9 children and had been searching for a church. She had been searching for a church and had been taught by missionaries from other churches. She came to a point where she stopped searching and stopped attending church. When the missionaries visited her she felt something different and she particularly loved the fact the they taught about the 3 degrees of glory (a principle that her grandmother had taught her). She joined the church and so did many of her children. Although some are not active. Some of us are enjoying the fruits of her decision.

3. What is the LDS church attendance like in your area?

We have seven stakes within the area that I live in. The are many wards and many branches on the verge of being split but the problem is the lack of worthy priesthood holders. In my ward there are a lot of families between the ages of 22-30. So we have a lot of young married couples, very few middle aged couples and about eight older couples. So as you can imagine there are a lot of young children. It is a wonderful place to be though because there's a lot of diversity, many different cultures.

4. How far away is the nearest temple? When was it built? How busy is it? Do most people in your country know about it? What are their feelings about it?

The nearest temple is about thirty minutes away. It caters for everyone in the South East Africa area (South Africa, Zimbabwe, Zambia, Madagascar) to name just a few. The attendance during the week is not that good. The temple is mostly occupied by patrons from other countries. On the weekends though the temple is VERY busy and some sessions have to be split. The temple is only open in the afternoon on weekdays but because the the attendance is increasing, they're looking into having it operate in the mornings also. Most people love the temple but it seems as if those who live further away seem to appreciate it more. Our leaders constantly give us counsel to attend as often as we can and there seems to be an improvement as a result of that.

5. What sort of reaction do you get from most people when they find out you are Mormon? Are people familiar with the church? Do you often have to defend or explain your beliefs?

I feel like I ALWAYS have to defend my beliefs. Most people who are not members of the church have only heard bad things about the church. A very good friend of mine is not talking to me anymore because of all the things she's seen on TV. She heard that the prophet abuses children :( It's sad that they don't give the church a chance. They just believe whatever they hear.

Missionary work is flourishing despite the negativity that people have about the church. Many families are being brought into the gospel and they always seem so happy. There was a baptism recently in my ward and the couple had been living together for a long time. After hearing about the gospel they got married and they are very well integrated into the church. I can say that the only barriers to missionary work are the misconceptions about the church from the media.

A lot of families are beginning to have less and less children and they are becoming more and more spread out. If a person has more than four children, they're considered as a big family. If a person has more than four children and they're about a year or two apart, they're most probably a Mormon family.

8. How many sisters do you visit teach? Do you have to travel far to reach them? What have been some of your best visiting teaching experiences?

I visit teach 4 families. The furthest is twenty minutes away and she is a very faithful sister. She has three children and she used to walk about for about two hours or more every Sunday morning to get to church. She gets a ride to church now but the fact that she walked that far with her children was a great testimony builder for me.

9. What are the greatest challenges the sisters in your Relief Society are facing?

A lot of the sisters are very faithful in the church. They attend the temple regularly, they serve diligently and they are so kind. The greatest challenge is that their husbands are not as faithful as they are. They are either partly active, less active, or not members at all. That is the greatest challenge and it is what weighs upon the minds and hearts of the leaders-- having the fathers of the families be just as faithful as the mothers.

10. What is the greatest blessing that the gospel of Jesus Christ has brought into your life?

The greatest blessing that I have had is to be married in the temple. I am so grateful to have a worthy Priesthood holder in my home. I know that whenever I need a blessing He will be there. He is not only a blessing to me but to my family. Although many of us are members of the church, many of us are women and to have a Melchizedek Priesthood holder in the family is an incredible blessing. Being married has brought me the greatest joy and sense of fulfillment in my life. I'm happy because I know that Heavenly Father loves his daughters and blesses them with the Priesthood.
Thank you so much Ayanda!

Five Things For Friday, 26th Edition

2011-12-30T01:00:00.000-08:00

-1-

I hope that you all had a wonderful Christmas. Mine was really nice. I really enjoyed having Christmas on the Sabbath this year. We were visiting my dad and his church started at 9 AM. So we did our Christmas stockings and presents from Santa in the morning but then saved the rest of the gift opening till after church. It really made for a special Christmas; one that was much more Christ centered than usual. I loved it. In fact, I think that next year my husband and I are going to see if any of the churches around us do Christmas morning services and make that a part our Christmas traditions. If none of them do I guess we will just have to create our own little service or program. But I sure hope that at least one of them does because it just felt so right to be at church on Christmas.

-2-

I think I won the "worst mother of the year award".

Really I did.

A few days before Christmas I dropped Asher and Rose off at my friend's house so that I could finish up my Christmas shopping. I took Abe with me and headed off to the store. I went into the store and it took me about 25 minutes to find what I needed and get back to the car. When I got back to the car I realized, to my utter horror, that I had left Abraham in the back of the car the whole time I was in the store. I had totally forgotten about him! Luckily he was bundled up really well and it wasn't very cold outside. I am so glad that he was still sleeping peacefully in his car seat. I think that if he had been crying I would have dug a hole right there and crawled in. Even as it was I felt so bad, I wanted to die. I am glad he has some good guardian angels.

I shared this experience on Facebook and my husband's aunt was kind enough to remind me that even Mary traveled three days with the caravan before she realized that Jesus was missing and had to go back to Jerusalem for him, where she found him teaching in the temple.

It makes me feel a little better to know that even the Mother of the son of God made the same sort of mistake. Granted, her son was 12 years-old instead of a month.

Yet having now forgotten about my own sucking child I better understand now the love that God has for us. We are His children and, unlike earthly parents, He will never ever forget about us.

"Can a woman forget her sucking child, that she should not have compassion on the son of her womb? yea, they may forget, yet will I not forget thee. I have graven thee upon the palms of my hands..." Isaiah 49: 15

He will definitely never leave us sitting in the Wal-Mart parking lot.

-3-

I think one of my favorite parts of Christmas is having a tree in the house. I am sort of picky and always insist that we have a real tree every year. It is mostly because we never had a plastic tree when I was growing up (and I refuse to compromise on that tradition) and also because I think there is something incredibly beautiful about having a living, breathing tree in my house (because contrary to what my husband thinks, the tree isn't "dead" until it stops drinking the water).

As I basked in the glow and spirit of my Christmas tree I was reminded of an article by Daniel C. Peterson entitled "Nephi and His Asherah". In the article Peterson talks about the tree of life that Nephi sees in his vision and its connection to Christ, Mary and our Heavenly Parents. The symbolism behind trees is deep and powerful and I hope that after reading this article you will never look at your Christmas tree quite the same way again. Here is just a bit of what he says,

"Since Nephi wanted to know the meaning of the tree that his father had seen and that he himself now saw, we would expect "the Spirit" to answer Nephi's question. But the response to Nephi's question is surprising:

And it came to pass that he said unto me: Look! And I looked as if to look upon him, and I saw him not; for he had gone from before my presence.

And it came to pass that I looked and beheld the great city of Jerusalem, and also other cities. And I beheld the city of Nazareth; and in the city of Nazareth I beheld a virgin, and she was exceedingly fair and white.

And it came to pass that I saw the heavens open; and an angel came down and stood before me; and he said unto me: Nephi, what beholdest thou?

And I said unto him: A virgin, most beautiful and fair above all other virgins.

And he said unto me: Knowest thou the condescension of God?

And I said unto him: I know that he loveth his children; nevertheless, I do not know the meaning of all things.

And he said unto me: Behold, the virgin whom thou seest is the mother of the Son of God, after the manner of the flesh.

And it came to pass that I beheld that she was carried away in the Spirit; and after she had been carried away in the Spirit for the space of a time the angel spake unto me, saying: Look!

And I looked and beheld the virgin again, bearing a child in her arms.

And the angel said unto me: Behold the Lamb of God, yea, even the Son of the Eternal Father! (1 Nephi 11:12—21)

Then "the Spirit" asks Nephi the question that Nephi himself had posed only a few verses before:

Knowest thou the meaning of the tree which thy father saw? (1 Nephi 11:21)

Strikingly, though the vision of Mary seems irrelevant to Nephi's original question about the significance of the tree—for the tree is nowhere mentioned in the angelic guide's response—Nephi himself now replies that, yes, he knows the answer to his question.

And I answered him, saying: Yea, it is the love of God, which sheddeth itself abroad in the hearts of the children of men; wherefore it is the most desirable above all things.

And he spake unto me, saying: Yea, and the most joyous to the soul. (1 Nephi 11:22—23)

How has Nephi come to this understanding? Clearly, the answer to his question about the meaning of the tree lies in the virgin mother with her child. It seems, in fact, that the virgin is the tree in some sense. Even the language used to describe her echoes that used for the tree. Just as she was "exceedingly fair and white," "most beautiful and fair above all other virgins," so was the tree's beauty "far beyond, yea, exceeding of all beauty; and the whiteness thereof did exceed the whiteness of the driven snow." Significantly, though, it was only when she appeared with a baby and was identified as "the mother of the Son of God" that Nephi grasped the tree's meaning.

Why would Nephi see a connection between a tree and the virginal mother of a divine child? I believe that Nephi's vision reflects a meaning of the "sacred tree" that is unique to the ancient Near East, and that, indeed, can only be fully appreciated when the ancient Canaanite and Israelite associations of that tree are borne in mind. Read the full article

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I am excited for New Year's Eve this weekend. We have invited some friends over to help us stay awake. My husband and I have discovered over the years that we have to either go to someone's house or invite people over for New Year's Eve or else we end up going to bed at 11:00 PM. Totally lame.

I am also looking forward to making new "New Year Miracles" and reflecting on how God has miraculously answered some of the miracles I asked for this year. It never ceases to amaze me how when I ask in faith for something God listens. God is truly a God of miracles.

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Wow, this turned out to be a long post. So I guess it won't hurt if I end it a little early, right?

Hope you have a wonderful weekend and a Happy New Year!

If you want to link to your own "Five Things for Friday" post you can use the tool below to add your link. 1) Please link to the URL of your blog post and not your main blog and 2) Please include a link back here.

Latter-day Saint Women Around the World: Sarah in Tunisia

2011-12-29T06:00:00.000-08:00

I still have quite a few more submissions to share for my Latter-day Saint Women Around the World series and am expecting to receive a few more in the next little while! It has been so much fun to get to hear about the different experiences women are having all over the world with the gospel.

Today's post comes from Sarah who just got back from living in Tunisia with her young family. My husband and I lived in Jordan for a summer and so I loved her perspectives about how similar Muslims and Latter-day Saints are... it is so true!

I have a husband and two children, ages six and four. We are originally from California, but we love to travel, and have lived in several different countries. Most recently, in September we got back from an eight-month stay in Tunisia. What with the revolution and the first big steps toward democracy in the country, It was a very exciting time to be there. You can read about our adventures, both scary and fun, on my blog: Casteluzzo.com.

1. What is the dominant belief system in your country? Do most people consider themselves to be "religious"? Are business and stores closed on Sunday? Do most people attend church?

The vast majority of Tunisians are Muslim. Many are devout, but the country is fairly secular. It is common to see a woman in a headscarf walking with another dressed in Western clothing. Tunisians are very tolerant of different beliefs, and enjoy talking about religion, both their own and other people's. Their day of prayer is Friday, but they do not have a tradition of closing their shops, except during prayer times and holidays (of which there are many), and during the holy month of Ramadan. Mosques are very well attended.

2. How long have you been a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints? If you are a convert please tell us a little about your conversion. If you were born in the church tell us a bit about your family and who was the first in your family to join the church.

I've been a member my whole life. Both my husband and I come from families that have been members since pioneer days. I've always heard that "the Church is the same wherever you go," which is true in all the most important ways. But I've really enjoyed going to church in other countries, and all the delightful little differences and things I learn from the members there.

3. What is the LDS church attendance like in your area?

There is no organized LDS church presence in Tunisia. Before we moved there, we contacted the Church's Middle East/North Africa Desk, which gave us the emails of a few members living in the country. We met in a private home, with a couple of other young families and single members. All of the members were Americans who were in Tunisia temporarily for employment. Average attendance was 10-12. We traveled the farthest, and it took us about an hour and a half to get to church most Sundays. We arrived the week after the popular revolution ousted the dictator, so for our first several weeks we had to dodge protests and stop at police checkpoints on our way to church. Yes, it was exciting.

Another Mormon family moved to Tunisia right after we did, so between them, us, and the family who had been there already, we had six children under the age of twelve. We organized a little Primary for them, and the parents took turns teaching. Another member volunteered to do Sunday School lessons each week. For Sacrament Meeting, the Sacrament was blessed and passed by two of the men (we were fortunate to have several Priesthood holders), and then we watched a talk from the most recent General Conference. Some weeks we held testimony meetings instead. Because there were so few of us, everyone always got a chance to bear testimony, and those were some of our most special and spiritual Sundays.

Sometimes I missed the security of a gigantic ward, but I actually loved having the chance to live somewhere with such a tiny congregation of members. We cherished the opportunity to meet together, and had many wonderful discussions and experiences. It reminded me of the very first Christians, who must have met together under similar conditions. In fact, many of those early Christians actually lived in Tunisia. The country is rich in Roman ruins, and some of them contain beautiful Christian mosaics. We also saw an incredible tiled baptismal font--meant for immersion baptisms! I am sure that many Tunisians today are descendants of those first brave Christians. It will be interesting to see what happens when Tunisia opens up for missionary work.

4. How far away is the nearest temple? When was it built? How busy is it? Do most people in your country know about it? What are their feelings about it?

The nearest temple . . . honestly, I don't know. Very far. We were not able to attend the temple while we were there. When the Rome temple is finished, it will be by far the closest, at a couple of hours by plane, or overnight on the ferry.

5. What sort of reaction do you get from most people when they find out you are Mormon? Are people familiar with the church? Do you often have to defend or explain your beliefs?

None of our Tunisian friends had ever heard of the Church. But they were very open and willing to talk about it. The LDS church generally discourages members in Middle Eastern countries from engaging in active missionary work, so we only ever invited our expat friends (non-Muslim) to church with us. But we had many conversations with Tunisians about our beliefs. We found that we actually have many things in common with the Muslims we met. They too avoid alcohol, dress modestly, fast, and pay something like tithing. I did a blog post over at Times & Seasons several weeks ago on other similarities between Mormons and Muslims.

6. How is missionary work in your country? Would you say that it is difficult or easy for missionaries to find people to teach? How often do you have a new baptism? What are the greatest barriers to missionary work in your country?

There are no missionaries (not even service missionaries) presently in Tunisia. I hope that with their new democratic government, the LDS church will be able to build some bridges. Maybe my children will be called on missions there someday!

7. How many families do you know (LDS or not) who have more than two children? If a family with four children moved to your area, would their family size seem unusual? What about a family with six children?

Tunisians love children, and large families are common. Four children would be perfectly normal. Six might be a little large in the city, but not in a smaller village.

8. How many sisters do you visit teach? Do you have to travel far to reach them? What have been some of your best visiting teaching experiences?

We didn't have an organized unit (we called our group the "Tunisian twig"), so nobody had formal callings, including visiting teaching. But we treasured our Sunday meetings, and always stayed afterwards for social time. We often had potlucks too, or met up outside of church for play-dates and other activities. Living so far from family, friends, and familiar things, we really valued getting together with the only other Mormons in the country.

9. What are the greatest challenges the sisters in your Relief Society are facing?

I think the biggest challenge for me and the few other sisters in our "twig" was just adapting to life in a very foreign country where we didn't have too large of a support system.

10. What is the greatest blessing that the gospel of Jesus Christ has brought into your life?

A forever marriage. There are so many forces trying to tear families apart, and knowing that we have been sealed together helps us to keep an eternal perspective, especially when we're far from home and sometimes feel like we don't have anything but each other.

Another reason I love belonging to the Church is that it is an instant support network, practically anywhere in the world. Moving to a new country is fun and exciting, but it can also be lonely and hard. Having even a few friends who share something as important as the Gospel cuts down on the culture shock and makes me feel at home. Even when languages differ and communication is difficult, the music is familiar, fellowship is felt, and the Spirit speaks equally to all.

Thank you so much Sarah. It will be exciting to see where you guys go next!

Have You Opened Your Gift?

2011-12-28T06:51:00.000-08:00

I loved this video from Sister Beck sharing a memory from her girlhood and reminding us to open and read the free gift that all the sisters of the Relief Society have been given this year...

the "Daughters in My Kingdom" book!

Now is the moment when I try to make you feel guilty.

Have you read it yet?

Not just opened it and skimmed it

but read it cover to cover?

Even better have you studied it,

highlighted it, and written notes in it?

Have you used it in a talk, or in a lesson for church,

or for Family Home Evening?

If you haven't you are definitely missing out on a beautiful gift.

I have to admit that when I got my copy of this book I was a bit disappointed with how small it was. I wanted it to be much, much longer. I was also disappointed because I'd had it in my mind that this book was going to try and tackle the difficult to understand parts of Relief Society history-- things like polygamy, women giving blessings, etc...

I think I was expecting it to be more of an apologetic book, defending and explaining the history of the Relief Society, but it isn't.

It is something much more powerful.

After I let go of my agenda about what I thought the book should be about I discovered the real message of the book. My heart expanded and I began to see that it is a beautiful and powerful (official church) history of God's dealings with his female disciples in the latter-days.

It is really incredible.

One of the main reasons there aren't as many women as men in the scriptures is because throughout most of history women have been unable to preserve their histories in written word. Most of the records we have today were kept by men and as a result we don't have very many female voices in the scriptures. Just imagine if the earlier Relief Societies had been able to create something like "Daughters in My Kingdom". What if the Relief Society of Sarah, Rebekah and Rachel or the Relief Society of Mary and Martha would have written their own history? If they had recorded the spiritual experiences they had, the commandments they had received from God, the service they rendered, and the challenges they faced?

That would be a treasure beyond all measure.

So I can't tell you how excited it makes me to see a book, written by a woman, that is totally dedicated to preserving and recording the stories of women and their relationships with God.

I'm not trying to be prophetic but it is my guess that if the Lord ever commands another book of scripture to be written-- one, that like the Book of Mormon, preserves the spiritual history of a people-- that "Daughters in My Kingdom" will most certainly be included. I can't help but feel that God wanted this book written not only to help His daughters who are living on the earth now to better understand what their privileges and responsibilities are in His kingdom, but also for the future generations of His daughters.

I think it may be His way of making sure that the stories of His daughters, and their contributions to His Kingdom, don't get lost or forgotten. He knows that they have powerful and important voices that need to be heard and "Daughters in My Kingdom" is all about preserving those voices.

So really, if you haven't opened your gift yet,

I highly recommend that you do.

Don't miss out on this beautiful gift

from God to His daughters

(and His sons!).

The Darkest Day of the Year

2011-12-22T12:02:00.000-08:00

" ...the darkness is past, and the true light now shineth."
1 John 2:8

Today is the winter solstice in the Northern Hemisphere.

This means that today is the shortest and darkest day of the whole year.

It is beautiful to me that the time when the world is as dark, cold and barren as it will be for the rest of the year we are preparing to celebrate the birth of the child who is the "light and life of the world."

Starting tomorrow we can start looking forward to ever increasing days of light
and decreasing nights of darkness.

We can look forward to the promise of spring

and new life for every creature on the earth.

I hope that as you turn on the Christmas lights on your house, light your Christmas tree, or read in front of a fire that you will remember that even though today life may seem dark, barren and cold that the birth of Christ and His glorious promise of light and life lay just around the corner.

For The Light has conquered the darkness.

Wishing you a happy Winter Solstice, a Merry Christmas, a Happy Hanukkah, and every other celebration of light held this time of year!

Red Coats and Race Cars

2011-12-19T13:38:00.000-08:00

Story #1

When I was 15 I begged my parents to buy me a red wool coat. The one I wanted was expensive, really expensive, and so I used every ounce of my persuasive power to convince them that I had to have that coat or else my life would be over. My persistent pleas worked and on Christmas morning I found myself the owner of a beautiful red wool pea coat.

Pea coats had yet to come into high fashion in my High School and so when I wore it to school I was the only one who had one. That made me feel important and I loved it that I got lots of compliments about how classy and old fashioned it made me look.

I really loved my coat.

The next year at Christmas time I was sitting in Sunday School when my teacher told a story about President Heber J. Grant as a boy. Apparently when President Grant was young he needed a new coat badly but his family was too poor to afford one. His mother finally manged to get him a beautiful new coat but the first day he wore it he met a boy who didn't have any coat. Without hesitating Heber took of his new coat and gave it to the boy. When he got home he told the story to his mother and she imploring asked why he couldn't have given him his old coat instead of his new one. He didn't say anything in response but just looked back up at her, and then she said, "No Heber, you couldn't have done that, could you?" She knew her son's heart and knew that his love for others was greater than his love for himself.

After church that day as I stood in the foyer putting on my red coat I asked myself if I, like President Grant, would have given up my new, treasured coat when I had an old one sitting in my closet at home. To my dismay I realized that parting with my coat would be really, really hard for me. In fact, I probably wouldn't give it up. If faced with a similar situation as President Grant I saw myself running home to get my old coat and giving that one away instead. A person without any coat, I rationalized, would just be grateful for any coat and wouldn't care what color or style it was. There would be no need to give up my new coat when I had a perfectly good old coat at home.

Story #2

This week was full of birthday and Christmas parties and by Sunday evening we had a house full of Grinches. After listening to our children beg and whine unceasingly for even more presents and even more candy Jon and I realized that we weren't doing a good job about teaching our children that Christmas is about giving and not just receiving.

Actually, we were pretty much failing at it.

So yesterday I helped Asher and Rose go through their toys and pick out things that they would like to donate to the local women's shelter. I explained to them that there are children in our city who don't have any toys. I told them that since Heavenly Father has blessed us with so many toys it would make Him happy to see us share what He has given us. Asher got really excited about this and enthusiastically started rummaging through his toys.

He opened his box of toy cars and I was surprised when instead of picking out a handful of his least favorite cars he brought me over his three most coveted cars. These were the cars that he had played with nearly every single day for the last few months, the cars that he never let his sister play with, and the cars that when one got misplaced everyone had to stop what they were doing and search for it.

He brought them over to me and said, "I want to give the boy who doesn't have any toys my cars."

My first reaction was to say, "Oh, Ash not those cars. You have lots of cars, you don't have to give your favorites away" but I caught myself just in time. I swallowed my greed and instead asked him,

"Are you sure Asher? You know that you won't get them back if you give them away."

He looked at me with the sweetest simplest face and said, "Yeah, Mom but I have lots of toys." Then without missing a beat he broke out the wrapping paper and personally wrapped all three of his little cars up for the "boy who doesn't have any toys." Afterwards he also chose some other nice toys to donate and made sure they were all wrapped up and put in the bag with his cars.

As I watched him wrap up his favorite cars to give to a little boy he's never met my heart melted.

Already at age four he has already learned a lesson that I, as an adult, am still struggling to learn.

His innocent kindness reminded me that it is when we give those things that are dearest to our hearts that we really give a gift worth giving. And the times when those gifts are hard to give are the times when we understand the true meaning of "charity" and become a bit more like our Savior.

My red coat is still hanging in my closet.

I'd like to think that now if I ever found myself in the same sort of situation as President Grant that I'd give up my coat in a heart beat. Yet, even as I write this, a part of me hesitates. I know that deep down inside I am still attached to that red coat. Giving it up would be hard for me. Yet I hope that when it came down to it that I could give it up joyfully ( regardless if the other person appreciated it or not) knowing, like my son and President Grant did, that it is truly more blessed to give than to receive.

Do you have a "red coat"? Would it be hard for you to give up? Do you think you could do it?

Five Things for Friday, 25th Edition

2011-12-16T01:00:00.000-08:00

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I just wanted to say thank you to all the wonderful women who have written posts for my series on Latter-day Saint Women around the World. It has been so much fun for me to read and share them... not to mention it has been such a help to have a series of pre-prepared posts so that I haven't had to worry about keeping my blog going while having a newborn. So thank you so much. I look forward to sharing the rest of the wonderful submissions I've gotten!

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The other day when I was loading all three of my kids into their car seats (which miraculously do all fit into the back of our car) I got thinking about how nice it must have been back in the days when they didn't have car seats. No straps to fuss with, not belts to untangle-- just throw the kids in and go! But then I started thinking more about it and realized that not having car seats or seat belts would mean that the kids could, and would, wander, jump and crawl all over the car. How did people drive with chaos like that going on? And what did they use to do with infants? Just lay them on the seat and hope they didn't roll off? Really, how in the world did our grandmothers manage riding in cars without car seats?

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This one of my favorite paintings of all time. It is called "Nativity" by Brian Kerkisnick (click the picture to view it bigger). I saw it once several years ago and it is stunning in real life, 17 feet long X 7 feet high! I can't even begin to say how much I LOVE this painting. It is my favorite depiction of the Nativity because it seems the most realistic. Mary breastfeeding Jesus, Mary attended by two midwives, the angels pressing down to see-- young and old, the dog with her puppies in the stable, and Joseph overwhelmed and awe. It also reminds me of this post, which I've linked to before but really love.

Someone informed me that the original of this painting is hanging up at BYU's Museum of Art right now, so if you happen to live around Provo, Utah make sure you go over and see it. It is so beautiful.

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I'd like to try adding some more variety to my family's breakfast diet but sadly my knowledge of breakfast dishes includes: cold cereal, pancakes, scrambled eggs, french toast, waffles, oatmeal and cream of wheat-- all of which we are TIRED of. I really need some new ideas. What does your family like to eat for breakfast? Do you have any good breakfast recipes to share?

-5-

Just a heads up, there won't be a Five Things for Friday post next week. We will be traveling to visit family instead. I can't wait to see them and introduce them to our new baby! Hope you all have a very Merry Christmas as well!

If you want to link to your own "Five Things for Friday" post you can use the tool below to add your link. 1) Please link to the URL of your blog post and not your main blog and 2) Please include a link back here.

In Mary's Words

2011-12-13T19:45:00.000-08:00

"According to Thy Word" by Elspeth Young
used with the artist's permission

I know I shouldn't pick favorites but the Gospel of Luke is my favorite book in the New Testament.

This is because Luke includes more stories about women in his gospel than any of the other gospel writers. His account is just overflowing with women! Not to mention that many of the women's stories are told in detail, beautiful intimate details, which show that he didn't just view women as a side story but as an important part of the story.

Luke, who also authored the Book of Acts (another book brimming with women's stories), was a later Christian convert and did not know the Savior himself. Though, as he explains in the second verse of his gospel, his purpose in writing was to give an account of Jesus' life, "Even as they delivered them unto us, which were eyewitnesses, and ministers of the word." Luke wanted to give an account "of all things from the very first" and since he had not witnessed them himself drew from several different sources to compile his gospel.

Many scholars believe that Luke wrote his gospel some time between 80-100 AD (source) and that he, as well as St. Mathew, used the gospel of Mark (which was written around 70 AD) as one of his sources. Scholars also believe that both Luke and Mathew drew information from another unknown source, commonly referred to as the "Q source" , which supposedly contained sayings of Jesus (see chart). Yet in addition to these sources Luke's gospel also includes much material that is unique to him and not mentioned in other gospels. For example many of the stories that Luke includes about women are not mentioned anywhere else, including the story of Elizabeth's miraculous conception, Mary's visit from Gabriel, Mary and Elizabeth's meeting, the words of the Magnificat, and the story of the nativity, among many others. All these stories are ones that scholars believe may have been part of a Christian oral tradition and that Luke drew from this tradition in order to compile nearly half of his gospel. (Source)

It is interesting to note that Christ died around 30 AD and it wasn't until 40 years later, after the temple was destroyed, that Peter instructed Mark (who personally knew Jesus and was an eye witness to much of His ministry) to write his gospel. Some scholars believe that during those 40 years Christians preserved the stories of Christ's life and His words through a strong oral tradition of storytelling and song rather than the written word. Evidence of this oral tradition might be evidenced many times throughout the epistles of Paul and other New Testament writers as they traveled preaching the gospel (source). In 1 Thessalonians 2:13 Paul writes,

"...because of this we also give thanks to God unceasingly, so that when you received the word of God which you heard from us, you received not the word of men, but just as it truly is, the word of God, which also is at work in you who believe."

and in Hebrews 2:1 the author instructs,

"On account of this we must give the more earnest heed to the things we have heard, lest we drift away. "

This possibility of a vibrant oral tradition among the early Christians in interesting because it means that many of the stories we have in the New Testament were first told by the individual involved and then later preserved through repeat tellings, though it is possible that many of the stories could have been written down.

For example, Mary is the only one who could have known what was said between her and the angel Gabriel, or what took place between her and Elisabeth, or who would have known the details of the night Jesus was born. It appears that even though at the time Mary may have " kept all these things and pondered them in her heart" (Luke 2:19) that later in her life she shared them and that it was her words that were preserved through the oral tradition (or a written document) and which Luke later included in his gospel.

It is a beautiful to me to think of Mary telling her story--Christ's story-- to a group of believers and imagining what an impact the story of his miraculous conception and birth must have had upon them. Sometimes as I read Luke 1 and 2 I imagine myself sitting at her feet listening to her tell me about how she questioned the angel, "How can this be, seeing I know not a man,", how when she realized that what the angel had told her was true she exclaimed, "My soul doth magnify the Lord", and how she brought forth her newborn son and wrapped him in swaddling clothes. And even though the words we have in Luke must have changed some over time, I can still hear her voice and her story impacts me deeply, just as it must have those early Christian saints.

I hope that as you read the accounts of Christ's miraculous conception and birth this Christmas season that you too will to listen for Mary's voice and let the message of her story change your heart and bring you closer to accepting the sacrifice of her divine son, Jesus Christ.

Latter-day Saint Women Around the World: Pamela from Finland

2011-12-12T01:00:00.000-08:00

Today's guest post is by Pamela from Finland. Pamela is the one who inspired me to start doing these posts on Latter-day Saint women around the world. So you if you are enjoying this series you have her to thank for it! I am so glad that I've gotten to know her better, and hope that maybe someday we will get to meet in real life. Her answers to my questions and below and wow, they are SO interesting. I would love to go to Finland.

(Photo taken by Daniela Talvitie)

Hi! My name is Pamela. I live on the beautiful west coast of Finland. I am 31, married, and mama of two. When the kids nap I like to read, knit and… let’s be honest, stare at a glowing screen. Our family loves the wonderful outdoors! I fantasize of babies, genealogy, traveling and that perfect dream house. I’m a journalist, indigo is my favorite color and I use three languages on a daily basis. I have a neglected little craft blog, found here: fridulina.blogspot.com

1.  What is the dominate belief system in your country?

A large majority of the Finnish population is Lutheran (78 %) and the Evangelical Lutheran Church of Finland has a legal position as state church. Although the Lutheran faith is so dominating, I wouldn’t say Finns in general are very religious. In a recent poll 29 percent of the respondents stated that religion is important to them. Tradition however is, and I believe many are Lutheran simply because of tradition, not conviction. For many Finns it’s important to be able to have an old-fashioned church wedding, a church christening or funeral.

People in general don’t attend church on a regular basis, not necessarily even those that are religious. When I tell people I go to church every single Sunday, three full hours with kids and all, they really think I’m joking.

I naturally wish many more would share my faith, or even show a little more interest in religion. But I still have a deep appreciation for the tradition and legacy of Christianity in this country. Every time I step inside an old Lutheran church I feel something special. I feel that it is a part of my heritage as much as anyone else’s.

 2. How long have you been a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints?

I was born in the church. My mother joined the church when she was a teenager and my paternal grandparents became members in the 50’s.

One favorite story about my family is about my grandfather Viktor. As I was writing this I was a little unsure about some of the details, and so I e-mailed my dad and asked him to write down the story for me. This my father’s story:

As a boy I had noticed an old book sitting in a drawer at home. I sometimes wondered to myself why it hadn’t been thrown away. It had literally been read to pieces. The cover and the first few pages were missing, the binding was starting to come undone so several pages at the beginning and the end were loose. The edges of each page showed marks of being turned countless times. It lay in the drawer with a rubber band wrapped around it to keep it together. I asked someone sometime about that book, and was told it was my father’s old Bible. Our neighbor had a brother that was very religious, and he knew about my father’s interest in religion. So he stopped by a few times every year, while he was visiting his brother next-door. My father who was on disability retirement (he was a war veteran) had plenty of spare time, and these two would immerse themselves in different religious topics. This friend sometimes wanted to question the Book of Mormon, and one time he especially wanted to underline the importance of the Bible. So he pulled out a Bible from his briefcase, and explained that he had received it many years ago as a wedding gift from the Lutheran priest that married him and his wife, with the exhortation to study it carefully and follow the teachings he would find. He said that he had followed the priest’s advice and this had led him to join another faith of which he was now a member. I wasn’t present when this happened, but my father told me about it afterwards. He told me that the Bible this man had showed him was very well kept and looked like new. Then he said: “I also have the Bible we were given when we were married, but I didn’t have the heart to take it out. I didn’t want to embarrass that man. You know, it’s the one in the drawer with the rubber band around it. I have read through it twice, and some of the scriptures I’ve read over again hundreds of times."

I love to think that when the missionaries earlier knocked on that same door and taught my grandfather about the restored church and of another testament of Jesus Christ, something within him recognized the same truth he already loved and knew so well from the Bible.
3. What sort of reaction do you get from most people when they find out you are Mormon?

To be honest, I am super shy about my faith. Some of my friends don’t know. I’ve never given away a Book of Mormon, and I only just recently shared a Mormon Messages video on Facebook for the first time. (I promise to post a link to this blog post!)

I really don’t mind people knowing or asking, but I always worry about being pushy or offending people. Religion is considered a very personal thing in our culture. Like sex or something. It’s nothing you discuss with a stranger.

But every time I do have a chance to tell people something about my beliefs, people are kind and respectful. People are definitely more open and less prejudiced nowadays, than perhaps one or two generations ago. Some will ask questions out of genuine interest, and some will feel really awkward in that typical Finnish way and quickly change the topic. ;)

I’m really trying to change my ways and be more open. I want to set a good example for my children. But it’s hard! (I’m even a little nervous about writing this post for the whole world to read!)

4. How is missionary work in your country? Would you say that it is difficult or easy for missionaries to find people to teach?  

Not easy. Finnish is a complicated language. And Finns are a complicated people. But the work is slowly moving forward. I can remember a time when there were only about a dozen baptisms per year in the whole country. Today, just in our ward we have a new baptism every three months or so.

I know the missionaries are teaching more families these days, and more young adults. The Institute Outreach Centers have been a huge hit, and I feel like there’s a growing optimism and enthusiasm about missionary work in this odd little corner of the vineyard.

  5. How far away is the nearest temple? When was it built? How busy is it? Do most people in your country know about it? What are their feelings about it?

The Helsinki temple was dedicated in 2006. Having our ”own” temple was something many Finnish members wouldn’t even dream about. I’m so glad president Hinckley did! With only 4 500 Finnish members we obviously wouldn't be able to keep a temple running just with our own resources, but the Baltic States and big parts of Russia are also part of our temple district.

The Helsinki temple open house attracted about 50 000 visitors. It's nothing exceptional compared to visitor numbers in other parts of the world, but for us it exceeded our wildest dreams. 50 000 Finns got out of their comfort zone to learn about our most sacred doctrines! Many of them stood in line for hours, whole families, sometimes in rain... It was a miracle. (I even invited some of my friends to the open house, which was a little miracle too. And they came.)  The building, and the dedication of the temple were widely covered in the media, mostly in a respectful and positive way. For anyone living in this country I'd say it was almost impossible to avoid hearing something about the temple. Through this whole process I’d say the church in Finland finally fully established itself in Finnish society.

What can I say; I just love the temple in so many ways!

6. What is the LDS church attendance like in your area?

There are two wards in our city. I should check this with someone, but I think attendance in our ward is about 100 on an average Sunday. The ward covers a large geographical area, but most active members live quite close by. We have a nice balance of people in the ward, maybe slightly more active women than men.

There are only two stakes in Finland, plus three districts. We travel far for our stake meetings!

7. How many families do you know (LDS or not) who have more than two children? If a family with four children moved to your area, would their family size seem unusual? What about a family with six children?

The Finnish fertility rate is actually slightly on the rise, but still hangs below two. Four children isn’t in my opinion unusual, but is definitely considered “many”. And anything above four is already a little unusual. I actually can’t even think of that many LDS families that have more than four children. My husband comes from a family of ten kids and they were always considered a little strange, haha. (Sorry, darling.)

8. What are the greatest challenges the sisters in your Relief Society are facing?

- The constant struggle to find balance in life - between children, husbands, home, work, church, society, personal needs and so on… Many sisters are tired, stressed and struggle with feelings of inadequacy.

- Trying to stay strong, and trying to find hope and happiness in the gospel, when children, husbands and friends choose a different path of life. While this is a challenge that can sometimes feel almost unbearable, I’ve found that the greatest comfort often comes through faithful, loving sisters in Relief Society.

9. What is the greatest blessing that the gospel of Jesus Christ has brought into your life?

Three things that give me a lot of joy are the temple, the Book of Mormon and understanding my birthright and potential as daughter of Heavenly Father.

Thanks Pamela! Your testimony is so beautiful and thank you so much for being brave enough to share it with us all.

Five Things For Friday, 24th Edition

2011-12-09T01:00:00.000-08:00

-1-

Turns out having three kids is harder than having two kids.

Last week someone asked me how I was handling transitioning to three kids and I emphatically told them that I was doing great and that it was much easier than I expected it to be.

Well, that was last week.

The week when my husband was still home during the day with me and I didn't have two sick kiddos (not Abraham thank heavens). This week I've been on my own and it has been hard. Sometimes I feels like all hell has broken loose and is running around my living room. I've decided to re-adopt the motto I gave myself after Rose was born and I was struggling learning how to handle two little ones:

"Success is only having one person crying at a time,
with bonus points if that one person isn't me".

That pretty much sums my life up.

I know things will get better once we all get back into some sort of schedule, but until then I am going to try really hard to remember that having three kids under the age of four (until next week that is) is a challenge and that as long as everyone is fed, bathed, has clean pants, and no one is bleeding I can consider the day a success!

-2-

I want to share Abe's Christmas stocking because I am pretty proud of how it turned out. I actually finished it before he was born and now just need to embroider his name on it. I've made similar looking stockings for my other kids (Asher's has a dove on it and Rose's has an angel) but I think this nativity scene is my favorite out of all of them!

-3-

Did you get a chance to watch the First Presidency Christmas Devotional? Elder Eyring shared some of the videos that the church has produced about the life of Christ. These videos are beautifully done and so powerful in their simplicity. I love the one they made of Elizabeth greeting Mary, it is such a sweet portrayal of a scene, which in my opinion, doesn't get shared enough. What truly remarkable women these two women were! I hope you will take the time to watch these videos and to share them with your friends they are a wonderful way to commemorate the birth of our Savior.

-4-

I've been reading "Radical Homemakers" by Shannon Hayes and am really enjoying it. Reading it has been so validating because the whole book is pretty much explaining (much better than I ever could) what I was trying to say in my "This is the Type of 'Feminist' I Am" post. What I call "family feminism" in my post she calls "radical homemaking", and while she takes a more of a ecological approach than a feminist approach she is really saying almost the exact same thing as me-- except with lots of good research to back it up. I would LOVE to have a online "book club" discussion about this book if there is anyone interested. What if I gave you a couple months to read it and then we could discuss it more on my blog? Any takers?

If you need something more to get you excited to read this book check out this book review.

-5-

Asher's pirate phase is still going strong and his latest obsession is drawing pirates. Our house is littered with dozens and dozens of his pirate pictures. The other night I came home and found that Jon and the kids had drawn some ornaments for the Christmas tree. Asher's started out as a regular ornament but turned into a pirate ornament

complete with a hook and a sword. Crazy boy.

Wishing you all a Merry Christmas and a great weekend!

If you want to link to your own "Five Things for Friday" post you can use the tool below to add your link. 1) Please link to the URL of your blog post and not your main blog and 2) Please include a link back here.

Latter-day Saint Women Around the World: Emma Lucy in Bosnia

2011-12-08T05:38:00.000-08:00

Today's guest post is by my husband's cousin Emma Lucy. She, along with her family, just recently returned home to United States after having lived in Bosnia and she just started her Freshman year of college! Hearing about her adventures has been a lot of fun and so I was excited she was willing to share her experiences with the LDS church there, especially because while she was there Bosnia was dedicated by Elder Nelson for the preaching of the gospel!

I come from a very observant LDS family with six children. We’ve moved around quite a bit, following my father’s work, and we have twice lived in Sarajevo, Bosnia. The first time, I was eight years old (I was actually baptized in Sarajevo, in a bathtub since we didn’t have a meetinghouse), and the church had no presence whatsoever save for my family and a few people living on a military base. We returned recently to spend a year there, and the church was both slightly larger and much more organized.

1. What is the dominant belief system in your country? Do most people consider themselves to be "religious"? Are business and stores closed on Sunday? Do most people attend church?

Bosnia is a predominantly Muslim country, although there is a significant Jew and Orthodox presence as well, especially within Sarajevo, which prides itself on its “triangle” of worship places (a section of town in which a mosque, a synagogue, and a cathedral are in close proximity to each other). In rural areas especially, Muslims tend to be strictly observant, but many people in the bigger cities are laxer in their adherence. Alcohol usage is quite high, and a significant number of women don’t wear the veil. At the same time, though, many believe very strongly in their religion and I had some friends who didn’t wear the veil but were very passionate in their faith. Almost everyone I knew identified themselves as religious, but there were a few who didn’t attend mosque regularly or pray five times a day, and Sarajevo as a whole would feel like quite a secular city were it not for the number of religious buildings, especially mosques. There are hundreds of mosques in Sarajevo, and the hauntingly beautiful call to prayer brings an element of faith into the lives of even the least religious.

Based on my admittedly limited observations, the rising generation in Bosnia is much less religious than the older population. This is understandable, as it was religious as well as ethnic tensions that caused the horror of the recent war in Sarajevo. Many of my teenage friends seemed to feel that shedding those ethnic tensions was impossible without also losing some religious fervor.

2. How long have you been a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints? If you are a convert please tell us a little about your conversion. If you were born in the church tell us a bit about your family and who was the first in your family to join the church.

I was born in the covenant, and on my mother’s side, my family has been LDS all the way back to the pioneers. My great-grandfather on my father’s side, however, was a second-generation Portuguese immigrant and a convert.

3. What is the LDS church attendance like in your area? How many stakes, wards, or branches are there in your area? On an average Sunday how many members attend church? Do people have to travel far to attend church? What are the demographics of your ward? Are most members young, old, married, single, are there more women then men? Or it is it a good balance?

Bosnia’s first branch was organized in September of 2010 by Elder Nelson, who came on a four-day trip through Eastern Europe during which he dedicated six countries for the preaching of the gospel. The branch in Sarajevo is the only currently existent branch, and at the time it was organized it had a membership of about a dozen. We only had one inactive member, but almost all of our members were American, as well, and all the Americans lived fairly close to our meeting place, which was in the embassy home of one of our families. Our few Bosnian members were further away and it was often very difficult to get them to church. Our demographics were quite diverse, however: we had two American families with children from five to eighteen, and then a few adults who were either single, married to nonmembers, or the only member of their family in the country, and there was a pretty even balance between men and women.

4. How far away is the nearest temple? When was it built? How busy is it? Do most people in your country know about it? What are their feelings about it?

The nearest temple to Sarajevo is several countries away, in Frankfurt, Germany. The Frankfurt temple was built in 1987, but I don’t know how busy it is because the distance makes it very difficult to attend. It’s not really within the reach of most Bosnians because it’s so far away; in fact, the only Bosnian that I met who knew about the temple at all was a young man who grew up a few blocks away from the Hong Kong temple. He told me that the temple was beautiful, but he was confused by its role in our church.

5. What sort of reaction do you get from most people when they find out you are Mormon? Are people familiar with the church? Do you often have to defend or explain your beliefs?

Most Bosnians are unfamiliar with the church although the people of Sarajevo, and especially the younger group that I spent most of my time with, were more aware. Still, only those who had lived outside of the country could really be expected to know about the church or to understand it to some small degree. Those were very willing to listen to explanations of my belief and were eager to have religious discussions, although their interest tended to be more intellectual than faith-oriented. On the other hand, the older generations and those from rural areas tended to be more distrustful or even hostile to our faith.

6. How is missionary work in your country? Would you say that it is difficult or easy for missionaries to find people to teach? How often do you have a new baptism? What are the greatest barriers to missionary work in your country?

The church hasn’t actually gotten through the bureaucratic channels to get permission to bring missionaries into Bosnia yet, although there is a single senior couple there right now who are trying to get all the paperwork done. Teaching Muslims is always a tenuous business, but I did manage to give out about a dozen Books of Mormon to various people in my school.

7. How many families do you know (LDS or not) who have more than two children? If a family with four children moved to your area, would their family size seem unusual? What about a family with six children?

There’s a bit of a variety in family sizes in Sarajevo. On the one hand, the war created an immense amount of poverty which kept families small, but there are a significant number of families with three or four children. My family, which has six children, seemed very large to most Bosnians, but they saw it as an impressive and desirable thing rather than something strange and unfavorable.

8. How many sisters do you visit teach? Do you have to travel far to reach them? What have been some of your best visiting teaching experiences?

In our branch in Sarajevo, the Relief Society was composed of four women: three Americans and a German convert who lived in a village quite a distance away who didn’t speak English and couldn’t often come to church because she didn’t have a car. We tried our best to visit the German sister regularly, but it was very difficult until we found somebody to drive her into Sarajevo on the Sabbath and hired a translator to facilitate communication.

9. What are the greatest challenges the sisters in your Relief Society are facing?

It’s hard to separate the challenges of the Relief Society in Sarajevo from the challenges of the branch as an entirety, since it’s such a small group and so much of what we do involves more than just the Relief Society. Still, the Relief Society had a difficult time fulfilling its responsibility to provide aid and welfare for the members since we had so few resources and since the German sister, who most needed our help, was difficult to reach. She was going through a lot of personal problems, and the language barrier made it very difficult to respond to those needs in the way a compassionate service coordinator in an American ward might. I think that it will be a great blessing to the church when missionaries are brought into Sarajevo who can try to fill those cavities.

10. What is the greatest blessing that the gospel of Jesus Christ has brought into your life?

The gospel has always been there. It is the most consistent part of my life, the thing I can rely on no matter where I’m living or what I’m doing, and has been instrumental in my self-definition. In the long run, though, I think the greatest blessing is not in how it has influenced my life already, but in how it will influence my life in the future: it has given me an understanding of eternal families and their importance that has changed how I interact with my family members and how I view the sacred ordinance of marriage.

Thank you Emma Lucy. Good luck with your finals :)

Latter-day Saint Women Around the World: Freja from Adelaide, Australia

2011-12-06T06:14:00.000-08:00

Today's guest post is by Freja from Australia. It was really fun for me to get to know her better, her writing is a lot of fun. And personally I'd recommend that while you read her post you try to do it in an Australian accent, it makes it even better!

My name is Freja. My name is Scandinavian – it goes well with my recently obtained married name, which is Finnish. But I am completely Australian.

My Dad is from the bush (we don’t really say ‘the outback’). His Dad could navigate through floods by the types of trees, not the stars. Dad eventually went to boarding school in Sydney, then onto an Anglican monastery in Adelaide. He wanted to be a priest. My Mum is from Sydney. She grew up an only child, supported her family, and worked really hard. She used to get in trouble at school for having super shiny nails (they thought it was nail polish). She worked several jobs, and became a sign writer and artist. She is brilliant with a paintbrush. They both joined the church on their own, later in life. Dad served a building mission in Sydney. Mum served a mission in Perth. They then met each other at institute, and were married. Their honeymoon was a trip to the New Zealand temple (closest temple at the time) to be sealed for eternity.

I, the oldest of their three, grew up in Sydney. I’m the responsible and independent one, extremely organised and well-travelled. I put myself through university twice, all while working full time and travelling the world when possible. Once, I researched every painting by Johannes Vermeer (The Girl with the Pearl Earring, anyone?) and backpacked my way around to each and every painting. Amsterdam, New York, London, Dublin, Las Vegas, etc. I loved being by myself, taking my sweet time in museums (two whole days in the Louvre; I checked off every room on the map). Another time, I travelled with a group to sing in the BBC Proms (not heard of that? How terribly ill-cultured you are) in London, taking my Dad with me to visit distant family, both dead and alive (1740) and to then visit two dear companions from my mission in Paris and Rome. Gotta love serving a mission on Temple Square. It’s the United Nations.

I now work as a lawyer. But my career ambitions have changed over the years. I’m now focused on family-friendly goals. Last year, I was married in the Sydney Australia temple. It is almost our one year wedding anniversary. We had a beautiful ceremony, with as many people as possible crammed into the sealing room (most were standing, with a few sitting on laps). We then ran about Sydney Harbour and the beach, taking photos and getting rained on. It was glorious.

We live in Adelaide, Australia. My husband was born and grew up here. In fact, we attend the same ward (congregation) he did growing up. So, we are completely surrounded by family and friends. It won’t always be that way – we are planning to buy our first home after Christmas, so change is in the air.

1. What is the dominate belief system in your country? Do most people consider themselves to be "religious"? Are business and stores closed on Sunday? Do most people attend church?

The main religions in Australia are the footy (either Aussie Rules (Australian Rules Football) or Rugby) and beer. I admit – I follow one of those religions (but not the other).

To be serious, I think the majority of Australians are not terribly religious. Sunday’s are viewed as a family day, but businesses would never close on Sundays (unless you’re a lazy bank or government agency). In fact, the weather is usually best on Sundays (so the beaches are popular) and most school/community sport is scheduled on a Sunday. Heathens.

In my opinion, if you claim to be religious or affiliated with a religion, you should (a) attend that church fairly regularly, and (b) live what is being taught. And that is where many fall short here in Australia. When the census comes around (as it just did a few months back), a lot of people claim a religion – Anglican, Protestant, Catholic – but rarely attend or even know what they are meant to believe. Unless you were born into “a good catholic family”, you probably don’t see the value in going to church each week or really know if God exists.

Having said that, Australia is more multi-cultural than it once was, and probably a lot more than you internationals realise. So the above is my opinion of Aussies (i.e. Anglo-Saxon descendants and all baby boomers), but we have many other cultures, most of which have a firmer grip on religion and tradition. Italians and Greeks (hello Melbourne!); Asian, Indian, Lebanese, Islamic and Muslims (hello Sydney!); Samoan and Tongan (hello Brisbane and Sydney!). I generalise on their locations, but you get the idea. Lots of great take out places for dinner. And so, with a lot of ‘minorities’ (I use that term very loosely), there is a wider variety of religious beliefs, and a greater possibility that Australians (all-encompassing) consider themselves religious.

2. How long have you been a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints? If you are a convert please tell us a little about your conversion. If you were born in the church tell us a bit about your family and who was the first in your family to join the church.

I have been a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints my whole life (read my Mormon.org profile here) but my parents were not. My Dad joined the Church when he was about 22. I think my Dad was always religiously inclined, sensing there was more out there to learn and become. He felt he was a Christian, and went along to the local Anglican youth group. Sometime after, he felt to go study the priesthood. He wanted to be a priest. He left little-town Walgett for big-city Adelaide in South Australia, and remained in an Anglican monastery for two-three years. He prayed in Latin; chanted; ate simple food and enjoyed the periods of silence (especially now he has children). He wore a long black robe with red tie around his middle. A black cross with a gold crucified Christ hung from the tie.

One day, this path simply didn’t feel right – “I felt I shouldn’t have been there, but I look back with fondness”, and my Dad left the priesthood. I guess he felt a little restless. He moved to Sydney, to live with some friends studying at university. One guy had a friend whose girlfriend was investigating the church. They went to a dance, inviting Dad along out of courtesy, but thinking he would be a hopeless investigator and not terribly interested. Missionaries were at the dance – “like bees around a honey pot”, Dad said – to find prospective members. And later, Dad was baptised after a dance, under the Roseville Bridge - after midnight!

My Mum jointed the Church when she was early twenties too. With Mum, it’s black and white. President Boyd K. Packer reminds me of her. It’s either true or it’s not. Take it or leave it. And after coming across some church literature, given to her from a church member she worked with, she decided to look into the matter herself. She sought the missionaries out herself and asked to be baptised. Done deal.

We are, however, encouraged to know for ourselves. I may have been born to Mormon parents, and as a child I probably did go to church because my parent’s expected it of me while living at home – yet I have come to the knowledge for myself that the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is the only Church on the earth teaching the gospel of Jesus Christ in its entirety. (Read more here)

3. What is the LDS church attendance like in your area? How many stakes, wards, or branches are there in your area? On an average Sunday how many members attend church? Do people have to travel far to attend church? What are the demographics of your ward? Are most members young, old, married, single, are there more women then men? Or it is it a good balance?

According to the statistics (as of 14 November 2011), church membership in Australia is at 129,744. Out of over-22 million people in Australia, it’s a low figure, a figure which includes inactive members too I’m guessing. The cross-section of church members here would be greatly multi-cultural. In the past year, I’ve seen several baptisms in my ward. Eight year olds. And international (mostly Asian) students.

I am fairly new to Adelaide – it’s one of the smaller capital cities in Australia. The ward I attend seems to be quite big, but a manageable size. We can fill the chapel nicely, and a few rows in the overflow. We have about 30 kids in primary and maybe 8 in nursery – heaps more than the other ward that shares the chapel with us.

Our ward is one of four in the stake. And I gotta say - I’ve been disappointed with attendance to both Stake and General Conferences lately. Coming from Sydney, I am used to crowded chapels and massive overflows. Here, that is not the case – and it is not because we lack the members. The buildings have been built because the number demanded them. People just didn’t turn up.

In Sydney (similar to Melbourne, I suspect), church attendance is higher. There are way more members, and they are spread out far and wide. Eight wards in my home stake. Eight stakes. I think. But what is most astounding (ask the foreign missionaries) is the sheer size of land. My home ward boundaries cover way too much land for a bicycle. I think a drive north-south of my stake would be (again, in Sydney traffic) about an hour and a half. Its crazy distances, having lived in Salt Lake and now living in Adelaide (aka Radelaide). I grew up 20-30 minutes from my chapel, 45-40 minutes from my stake centre, 40-60 minutes from a dance or fireside. And 20 minutes from the beach. (I had to put that in there.)

4. How far away is the nearest temple? When was it built? How busy is it? Do most people in your country know about it? What are their feelings about it?

The Adelaide Australia temple is within my ward boundaries. It is literally 15 minutes away from the house. Unfortunately for me and my salvation, I don’t reap that blessing nearly enough.
The Sydney Australia temple – the first Australian temple built in 1984 – was within my stake boundaries growing up. Sydney traffic is pretty bad, but with my Sydney driving skills, I could get there in 45-50 minutes.

Generally, in Australia, the temples are very accessible. We have five temples; every member really has no excuse. Whether travelling across the Tasman Sea from Tasmania to get to the Melbourne Australia temple, or driving across desert from Darwin, there really is no excuse.
I think attendance, overall, is low. Very few turn up regularly. I’ve seen the temple opening hours change several times in the past 12 months; sessions cancelled and different schedules offered, in the hope of a higher attendance. I think there are those people, usually the older generations, that are the regular attendees. Most have callings or assignments in the temple, or are retired and have the time to attend. They are the ones you see in the temple consistently.

Some ward/stake temple nights are good. Some are not. But generally, we members need those constant reminders from the pulpit. Otherwise temple attendance slips, and we find it hard to schedule in our busy lives.

As for the general public, not many are aware of our temples. Sure they stand out on the highways – big white buildings with beautiful gardens. But very little would connect the buildings to our religion. Even fewer would know what goes on inside – unless they are invited to a wedding or see the Christmas lights and camels on the hill (Sydney Temple).

5. What sort of reaction do you get from most people when they find out you are Mormon? Are people familiar with the church? Do you often have to defend or explain your beliefs?

I think most Australians do not know the Church or understand who we are. (This may be why the Church recently started the “I’m a Mormon” campaign here.) This is a friendly country – a culture of laying back, enjoying life, and having lots of mates (friends). But ask them about Mormons, and most would hesitate. There are so many misconceptions, and not enough education.

Most people try to hide it, but they are a little taken back when I say “I’m a Mormon”. I always say “I belong to the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints” first … which only produces a silence stare, like I spoke in a different language. Then the reaction is “Oh. I … ohh.” Most people don’t know what we believe. They haven’t the faintest idea. They have heard of ‘Mormon’ before – probably in high school, associated with the words ‘new’, ‘cult’, and ‘weird’. (Not at my school … let me tell you, it IS possible to have the religious curriculum thrown out by speaking up!)

Recently, I started a new job. My boss took me out for lunch, asked me conversational questions, and of course my religion came up. Even if we are not discussing religion, it is an integral part of my life, so it will always come up. And I choose to discuss it. The entire lunch meeting was me explaining my basic beliefs to my catholic-raised-but no longer attended-boss. And the result is usually the same: once you get over the initial “Oh my ... I thought you were normal” vibe, they see our beliefs are very similar to their own. And of course they are! We are Christian! And we read the same Bible! The best is when I steer the conversation towards topics I know will interest them: raising children in righteousness; the Godhead and our relationship with both God and our Saviour; how a prophet leads us today.

Most times there is no need to defend myself or my beliefs. If they have questions, I answer them. Australians are very friendly people, and unless you’re having a confrontational discussion (as a missionary on their doorstep), they won’t ask you the questions on their mind. I’m sure several people have wanted to ask about polygamy, but didn’t want to be rude or start a serious discussion. Or perhaps they just didn’t want to know.

Of course, these conversations don’t happen unless you get over the bump of the “Oh my … I thought you were normal” vibe. And unless you are talking to a friend or work colleague, it may not get that far.

6. How is missionary work in your country? Would you say that it is difficult or easy for missionaries to find people to teach? How often do you have a new baptism? What are the greatest barriers to missionary work in your country?

Missionary work here is hard. Not impossible, but hard. Aussies aren’t really spiritually inclined. (Our Prime Minister is an atheist.) Sure, some tick the box on the Census, maybe attend church at Easter; but more often than not, just nominal. The problem is lifestyle – our social lifestyle of friends, sport, drinking at the pub – it is too ingrained in some. It is really hard to give it up, to change. For some, it may take a life-altering event (e.g. a death in the family) for them to realise there is more to life, or a void to be filled.

But … there are always those people who have been prepared. The one door in a thousand, behind which is a family who desperately needs the missionaries to answer their questions. I’ve seen that happen a few times.

Also, my country is filled with lots of people with different backgrounds. And we have several Chinese, Tongan, Samoan, and other wards. In my ward, most baptisms have been international students from China (and other places) who are here studying at university, and will hopefully take their new found beliefs back to their homelands.

7. How many families do you know (LDS or not) who have more than two children? If a family with four children moved to your area, would their family size seem unusual? What about a family with six children?

My husband is one of seven. One of his sisters has six boys. So now a family of four or even five children doesn’t seem that bad big. I know of families (all church members) back in Sydney who have nine, ten, eleven children. But golly, that is extremely rare.

I’d say, whether inside or outside of the Church, most Australian families have 2-3 children. The majority of families any larger than that are some other culture - Polynesian or other. A few years back, a federal politician here famously said (when trying to push for more births): We should all have “one for Mum; one for dad; and one for the country”. That is the expected average … that many fall short of, right here in Australia.

8. How many sisters do you visit teach? Do you have to travel far to reach them? What have been some of your best visiting teaching experiences?

I visit teach two sisters. The assignment is generally to visit two or three. I am not very good at it. To be honest, I’ve never really caught the vision of it. I am so independent and so busy, that I’ve never felt (or experienced) the need for it. I know that will change.

One thing that has made somewhat a difference is not being partnered with my Mum or sister. Back home, I guess it made our lives easier, but it ended up being just Mum visiting her friends. I didn’t take much initiative at all. Now that I live far far away from Mum’s plains, I have to do it if I want it done. I travel about 10-15 minutes to visit teach. Not that far at all. And I make the effort to read and think about the message, as well as being genuinely concerned for the welfare of my sisterly-friends.

I must say that I’m in such a great ward - I have diligent sisters who visit teach me right now. I don’t think I’ve have that before.

9. What are the greatest challenges the sisters in your Relief Society are facing?

I don’t attend Relief Society. I am in Primary, and I have no idea what goes on in Relief Society. I usually find out about activities after they’ve happened.

Sometimes I forget that I am a member of the society of relief. Truly. I just don’t think about it. But, of course, when some ward activity, a soup Sunday, a need arises, the women are there. I do think the majority of women get too bogged down in over-tasking themselves. Most have more than one child, which means school and all that it encompasses (homework, camps, sport) as well as sleep overs, youth programs, fussy eaters, toilet training, dating, teaching obedience, blah blah. Wack a calling or two on top, plus cordinating multiple children and husband’s activities, and even a job … you know where I’m going with this. Women are prone to busy over-tasked lives. I honestly think Sunday School and Relief Society are time outs for these women. Sure they discuss things, but for most it is quiet time. Unless you’re in Primary …

10. What is the greatest blessing that the gospel of Jesus Christ has brought into your life?

The gospel of Jesus Christ is knowledge, which equals powerful.

From this knowledge – the knowledge of who I really am, what I am capable of and can one day be, and the understanding of why we exist, and how families can be united for eternity – I have a powerful sense of SECURITY. I understand my purpose; I understand how it all works; I understand my potential; and I understand that my husband and I will be together forever, literally. Families are eternal. That is security.

What a bloody brilliant blessing. (I’m Australian. I’m allowed to say such things.)

Also … as a side note, because I have the gospel of Jesus Christ in my life, I feel incredibly USEFUL. I have the willingness and energy to serve others in my church and in my community. I want to serve others. I love using my talents at church. I love feeling useful. How’s that for a blessing?

Freja you have inspired me to go make a profile on Mormon.org, so thanks! Oh, also I should mention that Freja also has a blog called Young and Faithful that is really a lot of fun to read.

Latter-day Saint Women Around the World: Filicity from Cape Province, South Africa

2011-12-05T05:55:00.000-08:00

Today's guest post is from Filicity, from South Africa. My sister-in-law who served a mission in Botswana met Filicity at the Johannesburg, South Africa Temple. This is what my sister-in-law said about her: "I actually just met her when we were at the temple one day since she is a temple worker there. She was excited to see the sisters, and she is such a cheerful and optimistic person. About a month or so after meeting her in passing, all the sisters got a little letter from her along with a picture of the Johannesburg temple and a copy of the dedicatory prayer. It meant so much to me to receive that. Filicity has such a strong and powerful spirit that drew me in from those first minutes that I had meeting her." She also told me that she has LOTS of personality!

Hi there. I am Filicity born in Strand, Cape Province in South Africa. I grew up in a troubled environment, both political and emotional.

What is the dominate belief system in your country? Do most people consider themselves to be "religious"?

Somewhat religious to fit their agenda.

Are business and stores closed on Sunday?

No

Do most people attend church?

Yes

2. How long have you been a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints? Please tell us a about your conversion.

I've been a member for 18 years. I worked as a security guard in a shopping centre. The rules of the centre was that no one is allowed to sell anything inside except those that were there. A couple of times we had to ask Jehovah Witness groups to not sell their Watch Tower there. One particular morning I saw four sisters and I thought they were from that religious group. I asked them what they were doing. They gave me a pamphlet on The Second Coming of the Saviour. I wasn't interested. One of my supervisors was very religious and I gave it to him. He showed no interest in it. I read some of it and tried getting hold of the missionaries. I called around at the same time but couldn't get a hold of them. Three days later a minister walked in and I asked him where I could find these people and the Church. He told me they were of the devil and that I needed to stay away from them. That same morning I called them again and got hold of them. I asked if I could come and see them. We made an appointment for that day. As I walked into their flat I looked for any signs that might portray some devilry signs. I told them about my experience and what was said about them. They just laughed. They shared some of the gospel and gave me a Book of Mormon. When I first held it in my left hand I just knew it was true. It felt physically like a heavy weight I was carrying.

We set up appointments. Because of the political unrest in my area they were not allowed to enter. We met in the flat block's lounge area. That was put to a stop by my management and we met in their flat. I could not get enough of what I was taught. I read with such an enthusiasm. My questions never stopped. The sisters helped feed that hunger for more. Just before I got baptized I got cold feet. The Wednesday before my baptism the sister missionaries wrote me letters. That was so inspired. I will never forget that. I still have their letters. I got baptized in Feb 1993, endowed in 1995, and am still going strong.

3. What is the LDS church attendance like in your area?

Fantastic. Our chapel is full on Sundays

How many stakes, wards, or branches are there in your area?

We have got seven Stakes, Centurion, Bedfordview, Benoni, Johannesburg, Pretoria, Roodepoort, Soweto. In my area there are seven wards.

On an average Sunday how many members attend church?

I think around 75% or more.

Do people have to travel far to attend church?

Some

What are the demographics of your ward? Are most members young, old, married, single, are there more women then men? Or it is it a good balance?

It's a good balance.

4. How far away is the nearest temple?

20 minutes to 45 if you are local.

When was it built?

24 August 1985

How busy is it?

Somewhat

Do most people in your country know about it?

No not really.

What are their feelings about it?

Not so sure

5. What sort of reaction do you get from most people when they find out you are Mormon?

Don't know what it is or prejudiced.

Are people familiar with the church?

Somewhat

Do you often have to defend or explain your beliefs?

Yes

6. How is missionary work in your country?

Amazing. The work is truly moving forward.

Would you say that it is difficult or easy for missionaries to find people to teach?

Some areas is more easier than others.

How often do you have a new baptism?

In my ward, at least three a month.

What are the greatest barriers to missionary work in your country?

Members fear of sharing their beliefs.

7. How many families do you know (LDS or not) who have more than two children? If a family with four children moved to your area, would their family size seem unusual? What about a family with six children?

LOTS!

8. How many sisters do you visit teach? Do you have to travel far to reach them? What have been some of your best visiting teaching experiences?

Six at the moment. Getting to know a sister in her environment has taught me more about her fears and dreams, her hopes and her accomplishments. We met with a young single adult whose mom refused to let her to go to institute. Explaining what we were about made each meeting more spiritual. The mother always makes sure she is there with every visit so she can learn more.

9. What are the greatest challenges the sisters in your Relief Society are facing?

Learning to serve and trust one another.

10. What is the greatest blessing that the gospel of Jesus Christ has brought into your life?

Freedom to live in such a way that I know that my life is not my own. That I am never alone and that I am loved beyond measure. Everyday working in the temple laundry brings teaching and learning moments where I can feel the Saviour's love more. There is just so much to know about ourselves. It is by no coincidence that everything has happened the way it did. The gospel is my way of life. Without it I am NOTHING.

Thank you so much Filicity! Your conversion story is so sweet.

Five Things For Friday, 23rd Edition

2011-12-02T01:00:00.000-08:00

-1-

I know I probably shouldn't admit this... but I really enjoy staying home from church with a newborn. Don't get me wrong, I love going to church and miss attending the meetings but it is also really sweet to have a few hours where all my attention can be devoted to my new little boy. I love snuggling up on the couch with him to read my scriptures and listen to music knowing that there isn't anyone who needs my time more. We've had some really sweet moments together the last couple of Sundays. I know that they can't last forever ( we did go to Sacrament meeting last week) but I am sure going to miss these mommy-baby dates when they are over!

-2-

I enjoyed this video of Shannon from The Redheaded Hostess teaching about how she does her scripture journals. It was fun to get to hear how she got started and what she has learned over the years from keeping a scripture journal. I loved how she stressed the need for women to keep a record of their spiritual insights for their children and grandchildren. Imagine how incredible it would be if women like Sarah, Deborah, Nephi's Wife, or Mary the Mother of God had kept scripture journals and recorded what they had learned. That would be a real treasure.

Shannon gives some really good tips about getting started with scripture journaling and I can't encourage you enough to start doing this if you aren't already.

Also, here is how I use my scripture journal.

-3-

We are doing a "homemade" Christmas this year. Last year we were so focused on presents, presents, presents that we lost focus of what Christmas is all about. As my husband likes to say we were "grinchy" and it really wasn't a very good Christmas. So this year we thought we'd try to keep things simpler. But I am a bit stumped about what to give grandparents for Christmas. I'd like it to be something that the kids can make but I don't want it to be hard or expensive. Any ideas for easy, inexpensive gifts that kids can make for their grandparents that they will actually use?

-4-

I appreciated everyone's comments in my "Teaching Children about Sexual Intimacy" post. My hope was to get people talking and I'm glad that you did! I just wanted to share a link that Alea shared in her comment. It is from the blog Be One and is called "Miss Rain's Moment of Truth". In it the author shares (with her daughter's permission) the conversation they had when she first taught her about intimacy. It is fantastic. She gives so many good ideas for how to approach your children and how to talk to them about sex. I especially loved what she said at the end:

In the end, we all went to bed that night with humble and happy hearts. I had truly been inspired in my words. We have followed up with her a time or two since then to see if her little mind has formulated more questions or concerns, and truly she is at peace. This conversation has since led to the explanation of menstrual cycles and, she is equipped. It is empowering to send her to school, or anywhere knowing that the spirit has confirmed truth to her tiny, tender heart. It was one of the greatest conversations we have shared. One I look forward to in the future with her siblings.

Rick Shatz- President and CEO of the National coalition for the protection of children and families said this in reference to teaching our kids about sex, "Decide what the right age is- subtract three years- and you're only one year late, and that isn't a joke. This is the reality of where we are in the world today." If the "right age" seems to be 12, 13, or 14... then his statement and the next statement as well, rings true: John R. Sealy, Md.- assistant clinical professor of psychology- UCLA said, "It is important to have dialogue about sex with your children. Much younger than teen, certainly by 8 or 9."

Everyone will have a different experience as it is unique to each child. Arming them with powerful information and peace is the ultimate goal to fight the temptations that come in life. Namely promiscuity, pornography, infidelity, self abuse, and others. I am grateful to have Miss Rain's permission to share our great day to any bloggers who choose to read or want to learn. She hopes all of your kids "feel happy too."

I send my best to every parent - everywhere. Do all you can. Read the whole post.

-5-

Just in case you haven't noticed by now grammar and spelling are NOT my strong points. In fact, lets just be honest--- I STINK at them. Once in High School I was entered in the proofreading competition at a journalism conference. I had to read through 20 or 30 pages of text and correct the grammar, style, punctuation, and spelling. I thought that I had done a fairly good job but when I got my entry back I found that I had failed miserably. In fact I got the worst score my journalism teacher had ever seen in his 20 years of teaching. He kindly told me that even though I was a fantastic writer I was by far the worst copy editor he'd ever had on his newspaper staff! I haven't gotten much better since then.

I am a little self conscious of the fact that many of my blog posts have typos and spelling mistakes. The problem is that I often don't notice them at all. I will read through my post to proofread it and my mind will automatically fill in the missing words, skip over the repeated words, and ignore the misspelled words. The same is true of other people's writing. I NEVER notice misspellings or typos. So either other people don't ever make mistakes (possible) or my mind is just really good at seeing only what I want to see. My husband says that this is reflective of my personality-- that I am really good at seeing past people's mistakes and faults and look more on their heart. I'd like to think that this is true. It is sure sounds a lot better than just being a space cadet!

I guess what I am trying to get at is please forgive my typos and my misspellings. I try my hardest, but most of the time my posts are written during nap time or with a child crawling all over my lap. I wish I had more time to make sure they were polished and perfect but I don't. So please be patient with me and try to see past my mistakes... because I make a lot of them.

I hope you have a wonderful weekend!

If you want to link to your own "Five Things for Friday" post you can use the tool below to add your link. 1) Please link to the URL of your blog post and not your main blog and 2) Please include a link back here.

Latter-day Saint Women Around the World: Curls from British Columbia, Canada

2011-12-01T05:50:00.000-08:00

My guest post today is by Curls from Motherhood: The Great Adventure. It has been fun for me to get to know her better the last year or so and I loved reading her thoughts about being a Latter-day Saint in Canada. You can read more about her adventures (and her super cute little girl) at her blog.

1. What is the dominate belief system in your country? Do most people consider themselves to be "religious"? Are business and stores closed on Sunday? Do most people attend church?

Since Canada is such a big place and I have only lived in BC, I’m just going to talk about the province of British Columbia. British Columbia is actually considered part of the bible belt which runs from the south up through the Midwest and ends in BC, so there are churches everywhere and most people are familiar with Christian beliefs, even though hardly anyone attends. I would say the dominate belief system is belief in self with Christian familiarity and a sizeable Sikh minority.

The city in which I live (Chilliwack) has the highest number of churches per population of any city in Canada, and as such it is actually much more religious than other parts or the province. However, most businesses and stores are open on Sunday, even banks now, and most churches aren’t well attended except at Easter and Christmas.

I’ve been a member since I was eight. The first members in my family to join the Church joined on both my dad’s and my mom’s sides way back when the church was in New York and Ohio or in the early missions to England. They then crossed the plans by wagon and settled in various places around Utah. (Draper, and Cache Valley) Eventually they ended up spread throughout Idaho and Utah (no Canadians as far as I know, no one got that far North). They were for the most part the diligent humble saints who are never mentioned in histories but who drive the work forward through simple acts of faith. I hope to be just like them.

3. What is the LDS church attendance like in your area? How many stakes, wards, or branches are there in your area? On an average Sunday how many members attend church? Do people have to travel far to attend church? What are the demographics of your ward? Are most members young, old, married, single, are there more women then men? Or it is it a good balance?

We have two wards in my city, we recently split about a year and a half ago. According to the LDS Newsroom there are 29,273 members in BC with one Mission and one recently built temple (2010) and 78 congregations. Our stake has wards from three different cities. Most people only have to travel a few minutes by car to church, but those who live rurarally have to travel farther. We only have a 2 minute drive from our apartment to church.

In our ward we have 127 sisters on the rolls but only about fifty attend regularly. (I don’t know what the full numbers are for our ward) One challenge we face is many retirees who travel for significant portions of the year, some are gone for four to five months at a time quite often.

Our ward’s demographics are mainly: empty nesters/retirees, young married couples with children in kindergarten and under, many widowed older sisters, and only 4 to 5 families with older children and youth. As such our primary and youth programs are quite small, but we are constantly having new babies born in our ward.

Another interesting demographic is that many people in our ward are from different countries. We have Argentines, Chileans, New Zealanders, Scots, Americans, Brits, Samoans and French. It’s a very diverse ward in terms of culture and finances. We have very poor people and very rich people with most people falling in between.

Most members in our ward are in family units, but we do have many widowed older sisters and a few single mothers as well. There is a fairly good balance between men and women.

4. How far away is the nearest temple? When was it built? How busy is it? Do most people in your country know about it? What are their feelings about it?

The temple is a forty five minute drive from our house. It’s in Langely, BC and was built in 2010. Unfortunately the temple itself isn’t very well attended, there are times we have been to a session and there were only five other people there. It’s one of the smaller temples, and relatively unknown. There are only 30,000 members to get the word out to a population of about 4 million, but the open house was well attended. I think most people don’t really have much a feeling either way about it.

5. What sort of reaction do you get from most people when they find out you are Mormon? Are people familiar with the church? Do you often have to defend or explain your beliefs?

Most people seem surprised that a young college educated woman would attend any church. Most of them have only heard of Mormons in the context of the FLDS group living in Bountiful BC and so think that all Mormons practice polygamy. I’ve never had to defend my beliefs, but I do explain them from time to time. Not so much right now since I’m at home with my baby, but when I was working it happened once or twice a month. Most people I’ve talked with about Mormons are themselves religious, those who don’t have any religious beliefs aren’t interested at all in mine I’ve found.

I would say it’s difficult for missionaries to find people to teach, although in the past few months our ward has really seen an increase in investigators. We’ve had three new member baptisms in the past year, most of them occurring quite recently.

I would say the greatest barriers to missionary work in BC is the general apathy toward religion, although in some cases it’s actually progressed to mild hostility toward religious belief in general

Actually in Chilliwack because of the general religiosity there are many families with more than 2 children, but that is not the norm for BC in general. A family of four would seem a little large, but not overly unusual. A family of six children would seem large. One nice thing about Chilliwack is that in general it’s very family friendly. They are very open to children and nursing isn’t a big deal. Because Chilliwack is so far from Vancouver mostly just family oriented people live here since it provides more outdoor space and housing prices are much lower.

8. How many sisters do you visit teach? Do you have to travel far to reach them? What have been some of your best visiting teaching experiences?

I visit teach two active sisters, and I only have to travel a few minutes to reach them. I love visiting teaching, it’s so wonderful to get to know sisters on a more personal level and become their friend. Most the women in the ward that I would consider friends I visit taught at one point.

9. What are the greatest challenges the sisters in your Relief Society are facing?

Because the sisters in our ward are so varied so are their challenges. We have health challenges. We have challenges with children, with finances, with being widowed or divorced. The challenges are fairly varied and unique. We are so blessed in Canada with peace and prosperity and so many other wonderful blessings I think our only communal challenge is our very blessings. Just like the Book of Mormon teaches when the Lord is blessing us the most is when we are most likely to struggle with pride.

But all in all I think I am blessed to live in such a wonderful country with such a wonderful ward.

10. What is the greatest blessing that the gospel of Jesus Christ has brought into your life?

My testimony. The knowledge that He is always there to help me, that I can find answers to any question or problem through the scriptures and personal revelation. The deep joy that my knowledge of the plan of salvation and my experiences with the atonement have given me. My family. Serving others. I couldn’t imagine my life without the gospel and I am so grateful to have been given such a wonderful gift from such a loving Heavenly Father.

Thank you Curls!

Teaching Children About Sexual Intimacy

2011-11-29T18:22:00.000-08:00

Due to the sensitive nature of the topic this post is not appropriate for young readers.

I received a wonderful comment a few days ago on a post I wrote last year called "In Which I Vent", which was an rant about a PG rated movie that showed several scenes of intimacy between a husband and a wife. This reader's comment brought up some really interesting thoughts and I thought it would make for a really good discussion. Here is what she wrote:

I have been mulling over this post for about a year now! I am very inclined to agree with you in every way. But I am also curious about how to teach children about sexuality in general. I told a friend of mine about your perspective on this movie and she said "I disagree, I want my daughters to have a good experience on their wedding night." Not that you have to view "soft porn" or any such thing to have a good experience, but when we view sexuality as "bad" it can be hard for our children to get the message that, between husband and wife, it is very very good. I know so many LDS women who have had a difficult time transitioning from "don't have sex, don't think about sex, don't do anything to arouse those emotions" to "enjoy it and become one with your husband." I mean, it took probably 10 years for my mom to not feel guilty after she was married. And I know many women feel the same. I even have an aunt who isn't active who thinks that the LDS Church views sex as bad in any form! So I guess my question is, how to we "live in the world and not be of the world," but at the same time teach our children to view intimacy in marriage as sacred and right?

I really appreciate this reader for being brave enough to address these questions because I think they are really important. Yet before I open up the conversation I just want to give my thoughts, I have two.

First, I think that sometimes when we are watching TV that we forget that the scenes and the people on the screen are real. We get so caught up in the fantasy world that TV creates for us that we forget that the man and the woman on the screen who are making out, taking off each other's clothes, and laying on top of each other in bed (all things that were in the movie I vented about) are not really married and therefore are not demonstrating healthy marital intimacy but rather fornication or adultery. Yet even if the actors were really married it would wouldn't make watching those type of actions any better. Just imagine if you were at the park and you saw a scantily clad married couple making out or lying on top of each other on a blanket under a tree, would you sit your children across from them and encourage them to watch it? If you are struggling with trying to decide if something is appropriate for your children (or you) to be watching just take a step back and ask yourself "Would I feel comfortable watching this if it were happening right before my eyes in real life." If the answer is "no" then you should probably turn it off.

Image source

Second, I think that this reader brings up a good point that there are some men and women who associate intimacy with feelings of guilt and shame. Yet I'd venture to say that one of the reasons men and women sometimes feel guilty about intimacy isn't because they haven't been exposed to it enough; it is because they have been exposed too much. Some of the feelings of shame associated with sexuality come from seeing something sacred and divine portrayed common and dirty. When we allow sacred things to be exploited for purposes of entertainment or curiosity we degrade and cheapen them. It hurts us to the very center of our divine nature and keeps us from fully experiencing the joy and the enlightenment that God wants us to glean from them.

I think that saying, "I want my daughter to have a good experience on her wedding night so I'll let her see sexual intimacy before she is married" is like saying, " I want my daughter to have a good experience the first time she goes to the temple so I'll let her see people performing temple ordinances before she goes." In both cases having a good experience has nothing to do with what you have seen or heard but has everything to do with how emotionally and spiritually prepared you are and how well you understand the sacred nature of what you are participating in. We would never want the sacred nature of the temple to be treated as common or to be misrepresented and the same is true of sexual intimacy. It is to be kept sacred-- not secret or scary-- but very sacred.

In speaking of sexual intimacy between a couple who have kept themselves morally pure and have a relationship built on mutual trust, commitment and respect M. Russel Ballard said,

"..For those couples sex becomes a form of communication, a way of expressing deep feelings for which there aren't adequate words. It is nature's most sublime way of bonding one human soul to another. And when its desired result is the creation of new life, it allows a man and a woman to join hands with God in fulfilling one of the key elements of Heavenly Father's eternal plan for his children. If that sounds old-fashioned, so be it. It also has the benefit of being true. And right." ( "Our Search for Happiness", pg. 107)

Each couple's form of communication is going to be different, and it can't be learned from a book, a magazine or a movie, it is something they must discover together. Part of me wishes we lived in the days when men and women went into marriage with no sexual expectations. They truly got to create and discover their own intimate language and communication without outside voices telling them what was "normal", "right" or "good". I think that today in our world that is so inundated with sexuality that couples have to unlearn much of what they have been taught by the world about sex in order to have a good healthy relationship.

So my advice for wanting to help your daughter be ready to have a good experience on her wedding night is to keep her away (as much as you can) from the world's portrayals of sexuality, even if they seem relatively harmless... because they aren't. Let her and her husband discover and learn to speak their own sacred, intimate language. Don't handicap her by exposing her to things that are only going to cheapen and demean her divine nature. Instead focus on helping her understand the divine power that she houses within her body and her responsibility to use it wisely, show her what a good relationship between a husband and wife looks like, and answer her questions honestly and openly but still keep sacred things sacred.

Okay those are my thoughts... now lets discuss.

Please remember to be kind and considerate of others when you comment, not everyone is in the same situation.

Latter-day Saint Women Around the World: Jo from East Yorkshire, England

2011-11-29T05:44:00.000-08:00

For today's guest post I am excited to introduce Jo! She does a good job of introducing herself and so I'll just skip straight to her post. The questions in bold are the ones I asked and her responses are below.

Hi. My name is Jo and I live on the East Yorkshire coast, UK with my husband Dominic and our 2-year-old son Caleb. Dominic and I have been married for 3 and a half years; we met in 2003 as friends, dated for a while from 2004 and then both left to serve missions in 2005. I served in the Utah Salt Lake City South Mission and Dominic served in the England London Mission. I returned home in 2006, he came home in 2007 and we were married in 2008! I am currently serving as the Relief Society president in my ward (just one of the reasons my blog is in desperate need of an update or two).

1. What is the dominate belief system in your country? Do most people consider themselves to be "religious"? Are business and stores closed on Sunday? Do most people attend church?

A few years ago, if you asked people here what religion they were, most people would answer Church of England although all that means is that they were christened in the Church of England... very few people actually attended church services. Now people are much more open about not being religious at all and, particularly where we live, that makes up the vast majority of the people! Many of the religious people actively attending any church in England are immigrants from other countries. I grew up in an area predominantly Muslim for much of my childhood and observed how they worked hard to preserve their cultural and religious roots, for example many churches were converted into Mosques. I had a wonderful childhood as it allowed me to grow up with many children who were being taught the same moral values.
Religion is generally tolerated here as long as it doesn't impose on anyone and the only strong opposition against our church comes from other Christian churches. Businesses and stores are all open on a Sunday, it is a trading day just like any other now.

2. How long have you been a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints? If you are a convert please tell us a little about your conversion. If you were born in the church tell us a bit about your family and who was the first in your family to join the church.

I have been a member of the church all my life. My mother is a convert to the church and my paternal grandparents are converts. I have recently been gathering together information from my grandfather about his personal history and it was a great blessing to hear him tell me about the amazing experiences he has had over the years, many of them too sacred to share. My grandfather worked as a coal miner in West Yorkshire, he and my grandmother had only been married a few years when the missionaries found them and they were baptised in 1957. He has been a real inspiration in our family and really led the way; he was a member of the first bishopric to be organized in Europe, helped establish the church scouting programme in the UK and was called onto the temple presidency when the Preston Temple was first dedicated. We would consider him and many like him to be (slightly more modern) pioneers. 

3. What is the LDS church attendance like in your area? How many stakes, wards, or branches are there in your area? On an average Sunday how many members attend church? Do people have to travel far to attend church? What are the demographics of your ward? Are most members young, old, married, single, are there more women then men? Or it is it a good balance?

The city we live in has a population of around 300,000. It is split into two wards, one with an average attendance of around 110 and one with an attendance close to 200. Our ward boundaries cover over 100 sq miles; half a city, 3 towns and around 40 villages, many of which are too far for the missionaries to travel to and so have no members. The furthest active members of our ward live around 15 miles from the chapel, many travel by Bus, some have to take a bus and a taxi. Our ward has more women than men and only 4 active YSA, with most of our active members being over 40. The ward on the other side of the city covers the university area and so has a much different demographic!

 4. How far away is the nearest temple? When was it built? How busy is it? Do most people in your country know about it? What are their feelings about it?

Our nearest temple is the Preston temple about 90 miles away. It was dedicated in 1997 and serves all of Northern England, Scotland and Ireland. Before the Preston temple, we would attend the London Temple, 250 miles away. We often would leave at 3-4am to arrive for our allocated time.

I remember my Parents telling me about their experience getting sealed in the London temple back in 1982. In our country, the sealing ceremony is not recognised as a legally binding marriage and so we must be married in a civil ceremony first. My mum and dad were married on a Friday evening at their local LDS chapel. They had a reception there and then drove down to London through the night, arriving at the temple in time for an early morning sealing!

The saints in the North of England rejoiced when we found out a temple would be built so close to us! It takes us just under 2 hours to drive to the temple and it is wonderful! Because the temple district is quite large there is an accommodation centre on the grounds so saints can stay overnight, usually for the week, and work in the temple.

The temple is not very busy during the week but at the weekends it gets really busy. Mostly with youth in the baptistry!

There was some opposition to the building of the temple and the usual anti-Mormon protesters but it seems that mostly people are just curious as to what it is. Many people comment about how beautiful the building is as it stands on a hill overlooking the moors and is clearly seen from a busy motorway!

5. What sort of reaction do you get from most people when they find out you are Mormon? Are people familiar with the church? Do you often have to defend or explain your beliefs?

Most people have heard of Mormons although the very next thing they ask is “Are you those people who have a ton of wives?!!” It is vary rare to find anyone with any accurate knowledge and so it is commonplace to be quizzed, especially at school and work. 

 6. How is missionary work in your country? Would you say that it is difficult or easy for missionaries to find people to teach? How often do you have a new baptism? What are the greatest barriers to missionary work in your country?

Missionary work has been going on here since the church began (the oldest ward in the whole church is in Preston and the first mission of the church was the England London mission) but is usually thought to be challenging. The greatest barriers to the work seem to be the general apathy toward religion, most people just don't think – or want to think about it. And the relative affluence and comfort most people here live with - “we don't need it” is a common response. In our ward we have a convert baptism probably on average once a quarter. We have one companionship of Elders assigned to our ward at any given time and they generally find it challenging and would like to have the success the elders in the university area have. The general feeling here is that the key to success with missionary work is with young people, and we are no exception, the average age of converts baptised into our ward is in the early 20s.

7. How many families do you know (LDS or not) who have more than two children? If a family with four children moved to your area, would their family size seem unusual? What about a family with six children?

The national average for number of children here is about 2. it is usually larger within the church but a family of six would still be considered large by most, even in the church. The traditional family is no longer the most common kind of family here, married heterosexual couples are fewer than the combination of single parent or same-sex parent families, with so few fathers present in families that the government is officially trying to get more men into teaching so that the next generation have some idea of a male role model.

8. How many sisters do you visit teach? Do you have to travel far to reach them? What have been some of your best visiting teaching experiences?

 I visit 4 sisters, most of them within a couple of miles and I do visit one sister who lives in a village about 10 miles away. The best experience I can remember with Visiting Teaching was at conference time this autumn. I have always felt that many times we make a visit and give the message to be able to report we have “done our duty”, I was determined that this would not be the the case. I visit one older sister in particular, she is a widow living alone and I had noticed from my earlier visits that she just loved to talk and was not so interested in receiving a message. Well for October, instead of just making another visit I invited her to come and share dinner with our family on conference Sunday and to stay afterwards to watch conference and socialise. She had a great time, enjoyed playing with our boisterous 2 year old and spent most of the day in the company of friends. We all really enjoyed having her over, but more than that, I felt that making that small extra effort to think of her needs made more difference to her than a year of well prepared and laminated messages! And it wasn't just me, helping her. She was able to bring to our family, a sweet spirit as she shared stories of when she had a young family at home. She shared her memories and her testimony with us and it was an experience that I will treasure!

 9. What are the greatest challenges the sisters in your Relief Society are facing? 

The most common challenge of the sisters in our ward is finding a worthy man to marry. We have so many sisters who have to live without some of the greatest blessings God has for us in this life. It is often the case that faithful sisters choose to remain single as the only available men are not members.

 10. What is the greatest blessing that the gospel of Jesus Christ has brought into your life?

The greatest blessing I feel has come to me directly through the gospel is that it has given me the ability to have a relationship with my Saviour and through Him, a relationship with my Father in Heaven. The knowledge that I am part of something much greater than what I see around me, gives me hope and helps me not get discouraged when trials come my way.

When all around me seems dark, the gospel of Jesus Christ offers a bright hope and pours light into my world-weary heart.

Thank you Jo! Oh, and you should really go check out her blog she is an AMAZING photographer!

Latter-day Saint Women Around the World: Amy in Japan

2011-11-26T13:00:00.000-08:00

Today's guest post is from one of my sweet friends (and fellow doula) Amy. She use to live just down the street from me but last year moved with her husband and two little kids to Japan. I was thrilled she was willing to talk about her experiences being a member of the LDS church there. She is lovely.

Our family belongs to The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints. Both my husband and I were born into the church to convert parents. We met at the church's private university, BYU, in Provo, Utah and have lived in Utah off and on the past 9 years. The LDS church is prevalent in Utah, which means that living there is quite a unique experience. There is a church on every block or two, it seems, and temples are abundant.

In January of this year, we moved from Utah to the smallest prefecture, Kagawa, on the smallest island, Shikoku, in Japan to teach English. This is our second time living here--something about the countryside of Japan is appealing to us. However, being LDS on a small Japanese island after living for years in the mecca of Mormonism is extremely different and something we are still getting used to.

Besides the language, the differences about the church here and the church in the U.S. are quite extreme. Let's start with the temple. When Fox and I moved from Logan, we attended the temple regularly. It was about a 5 minute drive from our house. Here, the closest temple is the Fukuoka temple, which opened in 2000. About every 4 months, our branch charters a bus on the day of a national holiday. The bus picks everyone up at midnight outside the branch building and treks the 8 hours to the temple. Once there, members go through two sessions and then clean the temple. The bus leaves in the afternoon to make the long journey back--the price for a bus ticket on the temple trip is about $120.

Even though we drive 45 minutes each way to our small branch building with only 60 active members on a good day (and our little Cosette is the only child in the nursery), the distance to the temple is what stings the most. There are some other noticeable differences, as well. Visiting teaching is done in groups of 6 and held after church, since most people have to travel a bit to the building. Members worthy to hold callings are few, so most worthy members have 2 or 3 callings. We are fortunate that we have 3 amazing translators in our ward who translate the Sunday talks into English for us. We also have about ten Americans in our branch (all from Utah!), so we have an English-speaking Sunday school, which is nice.

Culturally, we deal with a lot more Word of Wisdom issues than we have ever faced before when living in the United States. Most people here are Shinto--which is a cultural religion honoring the link between the past and the present, the earth and heaven--or Buddhist. There is a lot of tea drinking! We get the opportunity to explain why we don't drink tea quite often. Also, drinking alcohol with friends and colleagues is a huge part of the culture here. It is a sign of respect to get drunk in front of your coworkers. Luckily for us, our boss is the Young Men's president in our branch :) Unfortunately, pornography is rampant in Japan--adult video stores are everywhere. Pornography is openly displayed in every convenience store--which is quite a shock. The culture is very casual with nudity and adultery. This gives us an opportunity to constantly stand for what is right.

Lest you think that being LDS in Japan is all cons, there are some pros, as well. Missionary work here (we are in the Kobe mission) is doing amazing. We have been to several baptisms in the last 6 months! Our branch fellowships new and visiting members with amazing lunches held after church. The smallness of our branch breeds closeness--everyone is always smiling, shaking hands, and sharing any small excess from their harvest. Almost everyone is a first-generation convert and will tell you stories of how they rode 6 hours to church on their bike with their two children. Before our current branch building, built last year, members were attending church on the 2nd floor of a dilapidated building for thirty years--several classes held in the large room with just a divider between them.

Our family in 2008 with a friend from church and her family

The closest LDS temple, Fukuoka, about an 8 hour drive

The closest Buddhist temple, about a 15 minute drive

Perhaps the greatest blessing in being LDS so far from home in a country that knows very little of your religion is that you have to seek out the spiritual--it is not just a five minute drive to a temple; paying your tithing requires a long form and a trip to the post office. I think the challenges of living your beliefs in a place where it is difficult to do so brings about the greatest growth and blessings. We are very fortunately to live here with good missionaries, leaders, and a beautiful building. The rest is all just little stuff.

Thanks Amy! We sure miss you over here. Oh, and I am curious about how your tall husband manages over there. He must seem like a giant!

Five Things For Friday, Gratitude Edition

2011-11-25T01:00:00.000-08:00

Yesterday was Thanksgiving Day here in the United States and so I thought I'd use this Five Things for Friday to express things I am grateful for... which this year isn't hard to do at all.

I am grateful for 5 wonderful women who sent me this beautiful necklace last week!

The women I have been working with for the last two years to write and compile The Gift of Giving Life held a virtual "mother's blessing" for me. A mother's blessing is a little bit like a baby shower except that the idea is to shower the expectant or new mother with love and spiritual strength rather than clothes and baby things. (There is more about this in our book, including the history of LDS women giving each other mother's blessings in the early days of the church, so if you want to know more you'll just have to read the book!) Since we all live far away from each other (some of us have never actually met in person yet) and weren't able to physically get together they mailed my mother's blessing to me. They each wrote me a letter with encouraging and uplifting words about motherhood, pregnancy, and birth and then they each chose a bead and a song that went along with their message. They strung all the beads together into my necklace and burned all the songs on to a CD for me.

The idea was that I would get it BEFORE my baby was born and that when I was in labor I could wear the necklace and listen to the music and remember that I had women praying for me and sending me their love. BUT, because Abraham surprised us all and came early I got it when he was 5 days old instead! Still, I don't think it could have come at a better time. The day it came I was feeling overwhelmed and vulnerable (postpartum hormones will do that to you) and I needed their loving words. I've been wearing the necklace for the last week and it makes me feel like I am wearing a hug. I love those ladies.

I am grateful that we still have 4 more weeks until Christmas! I love Christmas time and am so excited that we can now officially put up our Christmas decorations and listen to Christmas music. It really is the best time of the year!

I am grateful for 3 little ragamuffins. Life has been sort of chaotic around here as we've all tried to figure out how we fit together as a new family, but it has been fun. Abraham has such a sweet spirit and he has only brought us closer together... sometimes too close... as I have to keep reminding the kids not to lay on or squash their baby brother!

I am grateful for the 2 weeks of dinner our Relief Society has brought us! They really went above and beyond this time and I have been so grateful for their love and service. Every time I am the recipient of service it just reminds me of how much even the tiniest acts of love mean to people. I am have been showered in love the last few weeks and it makes me want to give as much of it back as I can. Relief Society is awesome.

I am grateful for 1 amazing husband who has changed way more diapers than me, gotten up in the middle of the night with a fussy baby way more than me, done the dishes and cleaned the house way more than me, entertained two bored children way better than me, and napped way less than me. Not to mention trying to write his thesis at the same time. What a hunk.

Have a beautiful weekend!

If you want to link to your own "Five Things for Friday" post you can use the tool below to add your link. 1) Please link to the URL of your blog post and not your main blog and 2) Please include a link back here.

Latter-day Saint Women Around the World: Isa from Brazil

2011-11-22T13:00:00.000-08:00

Today's guest post is from Isa from Sorocaba, Brazil, a city of about 630, 000 people about 50 minutes outside São Paulo. I loved reading Isa's responses, she just bubbles enthusiasm for life and the gospel. I hope you enjoy her as much as I do. The questions I asked are in bold print and her responses are given below.

Hello, I'm Isadora. I will turn 20 years old in November and I'm currently dating. I'm from Brazil but I spend my vacations always in the US, to visit my boyfriend Jake. I'm a very outgoing person and just love to meet new people and cultures.

1. What is the dominate belief system in your country? Do most people consider themselves to be "religious"? Are business and stores closed on Sunday? Do most people attend church?

Well, in Brazil we have a lot of different religions. Most of them consider themselves Christians or Catholics. We also have the "spiritism" religion. But the majority are Christian. We have a religion here called "Christian Congregation of Brazil", and its very different. It is very rare to see stores closed on Sundays, but on Saturdays it is more common because the Adventist religion make Saturday as our Sunday, where they stay with their families, read the bible and do good things. Yes, most people attend to churches here, but not all of them are open only on Sundays. There are churches open everyday of the week, any time.

I've been a member of the church for a few years. I met the church when I was 7 years old when my mom decided to find a good place to go. My mom's parents always taught their children the Presbyterian beliefs, but since they're no longer on this earth, each daughter found a place to go by herself. My mom, on a Sunday morning, found the LDS church very close where we used to live at that time so she asked a sister from the ward: "Do you think I'm allowed to park here and watch the reunion?". That was how everything started. She truly loved the church and got baptized. As soon as I turned 8 years old, I did too.

My dad is not member of the church yet, he has no religion. He likes the church but says that he,"didn't feel he should start going yet..." . I know Lord has prepared wonderful opportunities for him to see what the Gospel looks like and what a big family we all are in the church. I'm just waiting for the right time to let things happen, so I won't push anything and let the Holy Spirit tell him things that will open his eyes and heart. Recently, my boyfriend (who lives in Ransomville, New York) got baptized too. It truly made my life easier and full of peace. He is going to a singles branch one hour from his house and completely enjoying it. Now he understands more the power of the scriptures (we read together through Skype), he knows how sacred and important the Temple is, and we both have the same goals now. It is wonderful to see how big the changes are when someone really lets Jesus' light shine on them. And just so you know, even my dad was happy for him!

3. What is the LDS church attendance like in your area? How many stakes, wards, or branches are there in your area? On an average Sunday how many members attend church? Do people have to travel far to attend church? What are the demographics of your ward? Are most members young, old, married, single, are there more women then men? Or it is it a good balance?

My ward is not so big. We have a 70-90 people frequency every Sunday, sometimes more, sometimes less. In my city, we have 4 stakes and lots of wards and branches. Luckily we don't have to travel far to attend church, but some far away branches have a big walk to meet at the closest church. Members of my ward are mostly families with kids or just-married couples. There are way more women then men, for sure. Our relief society has around 60% of all people in the ward.

4. How far away is the nearest temple? When was it built? How busy is it? Do most people in your country know about it? What are their feelings about it?

We have two temples very close to us: São Paulo temple and Campinas temple. Our ward always goes to Campinas temple, which is around 50 minutes from where we live. This temple was dedicated on May 17th, 2002. I still remember how excited everyone was to do the ordinances there for the first time. My ward has a special love for the Temple and every talk on Sunday at least one person talks about it, its importance, and also about genealogy.

5. What sort of reaction do you get from most people when they find out you are Mormon? Are people familiar with the church? Do you often have to defend or explain your beliefs?

Their answers are mostly, "Oh, thats why you don't do this, this and this?" hahah..

Anyways, some are very familiar with the church and some aren't. Its incredible how always after saying I'm a Mormon I have a few questions to make clear and explain. People still think we practice polygamy! Things should be more clear to them, so let's do it. I always try to tell them how happy and together people at church are, and they are always very curious about it. They always complete the sentence with, "Well, I heard you Mormons love spending time with your families and you also go on a mission." Also, some don't understand why young people go on a mission. For them it is a waste of time and money. Unfortunately, a few people here should be more "open" to religious diversity. Respect and love is the foundation for everything! As a Primary teacher, we recently had our special presentation during the sacrament meeting and the kids were talking about the temple and the scriptures. Something so funny and also lovely, is that they already have the Temple as their "marriage place". A few weeks ago, a cute brunette five-year-old boy came up to one of the little girls from my class and asked, "Will you be my eternal companion? Because you know, we must marry in the Temple" And it just made my day.

Missionary work is great! Mainly in the North of Brazil, where conditions are harder and they're constantly needing some help. They are lovely and so receptive. In the South it is a little harder, they are not so open but still very polite people. I guess you've heard about how Brazilians are friendly and happy all the time, and that is true. This is a bonus for the missionaries. Some people are hard to teach, and some are not. You can see a whole family getting baptized or even only one person going to church every Sunday by himself. Our ward is currently "saying goodbye" to a few people. Some are going to study in other towns, people are getting married and others are going to serve a mission but we have constant baptisms, mainly for kids who just turned eight. I am a Valients teacher and I always see in Primary how kids get excited and kind of make a "competition" of who gets baptized first. Cute!

Well, a few them do. Our ex-bishop had 9 children (well, most of them are married now) and the last one was adopted. So the total is 10. This is the biggest I've ever seen in the ward (kind of hard to compete compared to this number, I guess!!) Our average is always around 2-3 kids per family. I am a single daughter, but I plan to have at least two kids.

8. How many sisters do you visit teach? Do you have to travel far to reach them? What have been some of your best visiting teaching experiences?

Me and my mom (my visiting teacher companion) are set up to visit two ladies from our church. It is not far at all, they live in our neighborhood. Every time we visit teach we cherish even more our lives and notice how blessed we are. Sometimes we complain about something so small and then we hear other people's stories and we just want to cave a hole in the ground and put ourselves inside and hide there forever, from too much shame. I am thankful, so thankful for everything I have. Life in Brazil is not easy, but we are blessed that in our region and area we have everything we need - electric energy, pure water, food, and a warm and safe home to sleep. Some people don't, and every time we lay our heads down on the pillow at night to sleep we always remember those ones who don't have all the comfort and things we do have. This is a big lesson that I have learned for myself.

9. What are the greatest challenges the sisters in your Relief Society are facing?

Actually our Relief Society president just moved out, so I guess we will have some changes around here. She is going to a small branch in another city and I'm sure the next president will have a good opportunity to keep doing some work with all the ladies. We have a few women (including my mom) who don't have their husbands with them, so we are working hard on families recently, and also marriage for the ones who just got into the Relief Society. I stay in the Primary with the kids during the Relief Society meeting, and I miss those ladies. But I'm sure I'm doing a good work with the little ones and preparing them to be good sisters of the Relief Society in the future.

10. What is the greatest blessing that the gospel of Jesus Christ has brought into your life?

For sure the opportunity of being sealed to our families for eternity and the chance we have to get married in the Temple for all time. I'm lucky to have those goals in my life and I'm sure I'll make them happen someday. Another great blessing that the gospel has brought to my life is that we can truly be good examples for people if we want to and for me, it works for my father. You, that have a full and complete family at church every Sunday, be thankful for that! You may not notice your dad sometimes sitting next to you, or don't even give him a kiss on the cheek in the church hallway because you are "used" to see him around there. But next time, remember me and do it. Tell him how grateful you are to have a priesthood holder in your home, that can pray for you when you're sick or even advise you with the power of the Holy Ghost when you need it. This is one of the biggest blessings someone can have in their home - and that is what I want for my kids one day, for sure. I'm so thankful and happy to be a Mormon and have an eternal family!

Thank you so much Isa. Your testimony is beautiful. And I will for sure give my dad a kiss on the cheek next time I see him!

Latter-day Saint Women Around the World: Gabriella from Hungary

2011-11-20T14:00:00.000-08:00

Thanks to the wonderful international readers who responded to my post a few weeks ago I am excited to start my series on Latter-day Saint Women Around the World today! My first guest post is by Gabriella who is a Relief Society President in Pecs, Hungary. I have so enjoyed getting to know Gabriella and loved hearing her testimony. She is an inspiration. The questions I asked are in bold print and her responses are posted below.

1. What is the dominate belief system in your country? Do most people consider themselves to be "religious"? Are business and stores closed on Sunday? Do most people attend church?

Most of the people in Hungary belong to the (Roman) Catholic Church but some Internet polls say that almost one third of the population do not follow any religion or believe in God at all (40 years of communist rule gives an explanation to that). My experience is that even "religious" people don't attend church regularly, mostly the elderly do especially in the rural parts of the country. Though business and stores work on Sundays there is a tendency to keep them closed at least on major bank holidays.

2. How long have you been a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints ? If you are a convert please tell us a little about your conversion. If you were born in the church tell us a bit about your family and who was the first in your family to join the church.

When I was a child I did not believe in God. Both my parents were baptized to the Catholic church after being born. My maternal grandfather was said to be a Jew but he not only never practiced any religion but he put his "faith" in the Communist party and materialism. In our family we never talked about faith, religion was considered something to blindfold unsatisfied people. Through the years I developed my own faith, first it did not have much to do with God. The birth of my child made me realize I needed to make a commitment to God and that we both need to be baptized. Don't misunderstand me: I was looking for an easy way. I never had any intentions to take an active role in any church.

And when I started seeking was the exact time that I met the missionaries 2 years ago. This Elder baptized me after a 4 month investigation and he was teaching me the Gospel for 8 1/2 months altogether till the end of his mission! Everything the Gospel said, everything the Elders taught matched my opinion of the world. My testimony came line by line very clearly and undoubtedly. I obeyed a commandment and I received the blessing accordingly. Never doubted the Gospel was true, only had doubts in myself if I can endure. I was endowed last month on my 40th birthday which makes it even more unforgettable.

To my knowledge there are about 4600 latter-day saints in Hungary, 1 mission, 1 stake, 2 districts and 25 branches. The LDS church has been present in Hungary for about 20 years.

Our branch in the city of Pécs (with 160,000 inhabitants) has about 170 members but not more than 50 attend church regularly. The farthest people travel is about 30 kilometers. It they have to travel more they'd rather not come at all. :(

I would say there are not too many old people in our branch, I say they are mostly my age or younger. (I hope being 40 does not make me old). There is a common characteristic to most of the members: they come from a background/family with problems - single parents/divorced/disabled/immigrants (Hungarian minority in another country)/gypsies (minority in Hungary)/unemployed. And there are a LOT more women than men!!! We don't have our own church building yet. The place where we reside at the moment used to be a bank office downtown.

4. How far away is the nearest temple? When was it built? How busy is it? Do most people in your country know about it? What are their feelings about it?

The nearest temple is in Freiberg, Germany, about 900 kilometers from Pécs. It is the first temple built in the Communist area (East Germany at that time) and the smallest. It was dedicated by President Hinckley in 1985. Poland, Chech Republic and Hungary also belong to this temple. We visit the temple in pre-scheduled group visits. Each month they have special weeks for Hungarians, Chech and Polish people. During these weeks ordinances are done in our own languages not in German. We can hardly wait to have our own temple here in Hungary!

5. What sort of reaction do you get from most people when they find out you are Mormon? Are people familiar with the church? Do you often have to defend or explain your beliefs?

Most people identify Mormons with the Amish and all they have ever heard of is polygamy. Those who learn more about us get to like us and appreciate the values we share.

On one hand listening to solicitors here equals being "brainwashed". People are ashamed of being religious, they like the image of keeping everything in their own hands. But on the other hand they see the faults of other churches-- the contradiction in their teachings and way of life. There are many "blank ones" due to the Communist era when there was no religious education and these people are open to spiritual thoughts. In our branch we have 6-8 baptisms a year (at the local public pool ). I think the greatest barriers are people themselves: they are not willing to give up their life style, habits, time, and MONEY!!!

Big families are quite uncommon. Today's politics and economy does not make it easy for parents to raise children. In our ward we have a family with 4 and two other families with 3 children.

But if you see a family with more than 2 children you can be suspicious that they were divorced before and are bringing their children from the previous marriage to the new family. I myself come from a very similar background. I have 2 brothers and 2 sisters. Both my parents divorced 2 times. I have never been married and I am a single mom with a daughter who is 6.

8. How many sisters do you visit teach? Do you have to travel far to reach them? What have been some of your best visiting teaching experiences?

Sisters usually visit 2 other active sisters, some have an inactive sister to visit teach too. We try to keep in touch with them as long as they let us. The sisters usually live in the same neighborhood, they don't travel far, there are no big distances. Visiting teaching gives me heartache as Relief Society president. The sisters do not yet feel the cohering power of visiting teaching. Maybe the 2nd or 3rd generations, who grow up going visiting teaching with their mothers or grandmothers will recognize what an important role they play in each others lives. We give teachings on visiting teaching every 3 months trying to keep them focused.

9. What are the greatest challenges the sisters in your Relief Society are facing?

We have a sister who underwent a brain surgery in June. She is now active again coming to at least sacrament meetings every Sunday!!!! She is stronger in her faith because of our prayers and the healing power of priesthood blessings.

Most sisters face the challenges of a mixed family: a non-member husband, non-member parents, children. Their family can not accept the sisters' paying their tithing, or the time spent with church duties. To any of us it is not easy to balance between work, home, church callings. There are few sisters who really take their covenants seriously and they are the ones who carry the Relief Society on their shoulders. They are the ones who truly understand their divine nature and strive to live up to it. Others only come to "enjoy themselves" and the fruits of others' work. (oh, I am sorry about the pessimistic tone)

10. What is the greatest blessing that the gospel of Jesus Christ has brought into your life?

The greatest blessing to me is learning my potentials, being able to do things I would never have thought of because of fear or lack of experience. I am learning how to overcome my greatest opponent, myself. I have experienced that as long as I am faithful to my covenants I can count on the Lord's help no matter how hard the situation seems to be.

You can see more pictures of the Pecs branch and the LDS church in Hungry in this video that Gabriella made for some of the senior missionaries before they went home. It is so fun to see the love and joy that their branch has for each other and for the gospel. Thank you so much Gabriella!

Five Things For Friday, Newborn Edition

2011-11-18T01:14:00.000-08:00

-1-

Wow, I can't believe that Abraham is already a week old! It has been a really beautiful week. I LOVE the newborn stage, their needs are so simple and they are so fresh from God. Even though our house has sometimes been chaos, this baby has brought with him a little bit of heaven and we've all been basking in it. It has been wonderful not to have any plans or expectations except to rest, eat, and nap. We've been living on a baby schedule and it has been SO nice to slow down. I am going to make it last as long as I possibly can!

He is really a mellow little kid. Either that or I am just a more mellow mother now than I used to be. It is probably a combination of both.

-2-

We didn't realize it when we named him but "Abraham" sounds very similar to "Apricot" (which was the name we called him in the womb) and we've all had a hard time transitioning over--especially Jon. I think half the time he calls the baby "Apricot" and the other half of the time he gets it right. For the first several days Rose didn't even try to call the baby by his name because she was so confused about what to call him. We had the same problem though with Asher too. His womb name was "Buster" and because it ended in an "er" just like "Asher" we got it confused really easily. It took us about a month before his name stuck, and I am thinking that it might be the same with Abraham.

-3-

I really love nursing a baby. It is beautiful to look down and see two big eyes looking back at me with love, trust, and perfect faith in my ability to provide. It makes me feel incredibly needed to know that my body is once again keeping this little boy alive and that we aren't quite separate yet. I think that one of my favorite authors, Louise Erdrich, explained it best:

"One day as I am holding baby and feeding her, I realize that this is exactly the state of mind and heart that so many writers from Thomas Mann to James Joyce describe with yearning-- the mystery of an epiphany, the sense of oceanic oneness, the great yes, the wholeness. There is also the sense of a self merged at least temporarily-- it is deathlike. I close my eyes and see Frost's too peaceful snowy woods, but realize that this is also the most alive place I know-- Blake's gratified desire. These are the dark places in the big two-hearted river, where Hemingway's Nick Adams won't cast his line, the easeful death of the self of Keat's nightingale. Perhaps we owe some of our most moving literature to men who didn't understand that they wanted to be women nursing babies." ("The Blue Jay's Dance", pg. 148)

I think she might be onto something.

-4-

Asher and Rose have been so enthralled with their little brother. They constantly want to hold him, give him his pacifier, "pet" him (as they say), and help with him. For the first few days Asher was especially concerned about making sure the baby was getting enough to eat. In fact, one of the very first things he said when he was the baby for the first time was, "Oh, Mom give him milk. He's hungry." When I explained that I'd already fed him he went into his room and came back with a bowl full of plastic food from his play kitchen for the baby to eat. Then a few minutes later he went downstairs and came back up with a glassful of chocolate milk "for the baby". He ended up drinking it and went back downstairs. When I hadn't heard anything from him for several minutes I told Jon to go check on him and Jon found him making the baby some "juice" out of vanilla, curry powder, cinnamon and baking soda! In the last week he's made the baby several more "juices" and it is getting to the point where we might need to put a lock on the spice cupboard. He is just thrilled about being a big brother.

Rose is doing well adjusting, but I think she is having a hard time with the fact that she doesn't get quite as much attention as she used to. I think it is also hard for her that she is little and can't help with the baby as much as she wants to. She's been peeing her pants a lot the last few days (something she has hardly ever done) and I wonder if it isn't because she wants to get our attention. Our family dynamic has shifted and I think it is going to take us all awhile to adjust to it. Yet in the meantime, any suggestions about helping older siblings adjust to a new baby?

-5-

I didn't realize what a big difference two extra weeks in the womb makes in a baby's development and size! Abraham was almost two pounds smaller than Rose and Asher when he was born and he just feels so tiny to me! He has the skinniest little chicken legs.

I just can't get enough of him. I wish there was a way I could slow down time. I hate seeing these days pass by so quickly.

Have a wonderful weekend!

If you want to link to your own "Five Things for Friday" post you can use the tool below to add your link. 1) Please link to the URL of your blog post and not your main blog and 2) Please include a link back here.

Abraham's Birth Story

2011-11-14T09:07:00.000-08:00

Thursday morning-- exactly two weeks before my due date-- I woke up with a dull, crampy ache in my abdomen, lower back, and legs. It didn't feel like labor and so I assumed it was just another one of the many pregnancy aches and pains I'd been feeling the last few weeks. Yet as the morning progressed I realized that these "cramps" weren't going away and some of them were strong enough to stop me in my tracks. I was really confused by them because they didn't feel like labor contractions and they weren't regular at all. Still, I told my husband that we should clean up the house before he left for work, just in case, but that I was pretty sure that these "contractions" would die out in a little while. The baby had been very, very posterior (meaning his face was facing forwards instead of backwards) at my last pre-natal appointment and Jon and I had been doing all the exercise and techniques the midwife had given us to help him turn, but he wouldn't budge. I was pretty sure that the reason my contractions were so sporadic was because he was still posterior and since he wasn't in a good position things weren't really progressing. I had scheduled an appointment with the chiropractor on Monday to see if she could help him turn but I realized now that I might not make it to Monday. So I called and re-scheduled my appointment with the chiropractor for later that day, just in case.

As the day progressed the contractions stayed pretty much the same, varying in strength and having no real pattern or consistency to them. I was really grumpy and irritable with the kids, but besides that it was pretty much a normal day. We cleaned the kitchen and watched movies. By the afternoon I was really confused about what I was feeling because it didn't feel like labor, but it didn't feel like it was going to go away anytime soon. I took a nap and when the contractions still didn't go away I decided to call my midwife and see what she thought. When I explained what I was feeling she said that it sounded like it probably was real labor but that because my baby was so posterior that the contractions weren't really doing very much. She suggested that I put on a movie and hang out in the "polar bear position" (head and chest resting on the ground with your bottom up in the air) to see if I couldn't give him a bit more room to turn around in.

I went to the chiropractors at 4:15 PM and she adjusted my hips and said that they felt really pliable and soft. She also helped loosen up my ligaments and did some things to help encourage the baby into a better position. I only had two little contractions the whole time I was at her office and when I got home around 5:15 PM my contractions were still not very strong or regular. Jon needed to run up to work for a few minutes and I told him that it was fine if he left because I was feeling pretty much like I had all day. I just told him he needed to be home by 6:15 because we were having a Relief Society meeting that night at 6:30 and I was in charge of one of the crafts and needed to get things set up. After he left I put another movie in for the kids (Asher thought he'd hit the jackpot with all the movies I was letting him watch) and laid down on the floor in the polar bear position. I'd been lying like that for about 30 minutes when I felt the BIGGEST and longest contraction ever. It was awful. After it was over I told God that I never wanted to feel another one like that, ever again, and that if that was what labor was going to feel like that I changed my mind and didn't really want to do it.

After that contraction I couldn't get comfortable again and so I got up and warmed up some soup for the kids to eat for dinner. I didn't make anything for me because I was still planning on going to the Relief Society meeting and knew that there would be dinner there. I went up stairs to try to get dressed to go to Relief Society but I couldn't bring myself to put on any pants (I'd been wearing a dress all day)-- the thought of anything touching my belly made me want to scream. It was about then I realized that I probably wasn't going to make it to the Relief Society meeting. I called Jon but he didn't answer his phone. I left him a desperate, angry message (which he got the next morning) and told him he better get home as soon as he could because I couldn't handle things any more. I also called my cousin and asked if she might be able to come get my kids and have them stay the night at her house. I told her that I might might not be in labor but that I would just feel better if I knew my kids were taken care of.

Jon got home around 6:20 PM and I told him that I wasn't going to go to the Relief Society meeting but that I still needed to drop off the supplies at the church or else they wouldn't be able to do the craft. We loaded up the kids and drove over to the church. As I was walking from the car to the church I had a big contraction that took me a few minutes to recover from. It was then I realized that this was the "real" thing and that I should probably call the midwife. We dropped off the craft supplies to the Relief Society president (who was super excited when I told her I was in labor) and when we got back home I called the midwife. She knew how fast my last labor had been and so she said she'd be there as soon as possible. My cousin showed up to get the kids (who were oblivious to what was going on) and she said she was excited that I'd be having a 11-11-11 baby. I looked at the clock and saw that it was only 7 PM and I told her, "Oh, I sure hope this doesn't take that long!".

After she left with the kids I was able to start focusing but I was having a really, really bad attitude about being in labor. I had one contraction on the toilet and it hurt so bad that afterward I told Jon "I don't think that I want to do this." Things were getting hard and I thought that I still had several more hours of labor ahead of me. In my heart I knew that I could do it (I'd already done it two times before) but I didn't really want to do it. I remember thinking to myself, "Maybe I'll just go get an epidural this time because I just don't want to do this again." Looking back now I realize that I was probably in transition but I didn't know that at the time. All I knew was that things were hard and that they were just going to get harder and I didn't know if I could handle that.

Jon started setting up the birth pool and I went into the living room where I turned off the lights and turned on some relaxing music. I knelt on the floor and leaned up against the couch. With every contraction I'd rock back and forth making scooping motions with my head. I was doing a good job of handling the contractions by myself but I was still having a bad attitude. After every one ended I'd think, "I hated that. I don't want to do that again. I don't think I can do this." I knew that I needed to change my self talk to something more positive (just like running a marathon labor is really about 10% physical and 90% mental) but I just couldn't seem to do it. It was about this time that Jon came in and randomly picked my scriptures up off the shelf and opened it to where my bookmark was. He read me,

"When I was a child, I spake as a child, I understood as a child, I thought as a child: but when I became a man, I put away childish things. For now we see through a glass darkly; but then face to face: now I know in part; but then shall I know even as also I am known. And now abideth faith, hope and charity, these three; but the greatest of these is charity." (1 Corinthians 13: 11-13)

I don't think he could have read anything better to me at that point. I'd been working on memorizing that chapter (which is all about charity) the last few weeks and as I had been memorizing I'd been pondering on how giving birth is one of the greatest acts of charity that can be performed in this life. Charity "suffereth long" and I knew that I was willing to "suffer" as long as was needed to bring this little child into the world. I realized that like Paul said I was "seeing through a glass darkly" and that at the time the pain and the discomfort did not seem worth it. Yet I knew that if I endured I would soon see this baby "face to face" and I then I would know that it was all worth it. After that my attitude changed and I started telling myself that even though I didn't want to do this I was willing to do this. I was willing to feel everything the Lord had prepared for me to experience in order to bring this little one to the earth.

Changing my self talk helped a lot, but it didn't make the contractions any easier to handle! They were getting harder and harder. I found that I was holding a pillow in my hands and that as I rocked back and forth with each contraction I'd brush my nose against it. Jon was sitting on the couch next to me holding my hand and whenever he'd try to say something I'd tell him to be quiet. I just needed him there. As the contractions increased in frequency and intensity I found my mind groping around for another thought that would help me cope with the contractions. I found that an essay I had written for our book "The Gift of Giving Life" called "The Breath of Life" came into my mind. In the essay I wrote this:

"...in the Book of Abraham we read how after God formed Adam’s body from the dust of the earth he took his spirit (which had already been created) and put it into him. At this point Adam’s body and spirit were separate but then we read that God, “breathed into his nostrils the breath of life, and he became a living soul.” (Abraham 5:7) It is our breath, the breath of life that God grants each of us, that unifies our body and our spirit together and allows us to become, like Adam, a living soul. When we die we loose our breath and our body and spirit again separate, waiting until the time when they will be resurrected and inseparably unified as a soul. Our breath is the glue that holds our body and our spirit together. The more conscious we are of it (and the more we are able to express gratitude for it) the more we strengthen the connection between them and increase our soul’s power. Breathing is a truly one of our greatest gifts from God."

It is by God's grace that we take each breath and breathing is a constant reminder that He is with us, sustaining us, every moment that we live. At that point in my labor I knew that I couldn't make it through to the end without God's help. The thought came to me that I could use my breath to give me strength and to remind me that God was with me. I continued to rock and scoop my nose on the pillow with each contraction, but I'd take deep, deep breaths and focus on sending the air down to where the contraction hurt the most. I imagined that there was a fire in my uterus (which is what it felt like!) and that with each breath I was sending air to blow it out. I also told myself that it didn't matter how much stronger the contractions got-- how big the fire raged-- because God had given me an unlimited supply of air. God would always be more powerful than the pain and he would always have enough air for me to blow out the "fire." That was a really profound lesson for me to learn and, even days later, it still gives me an incredible sense of power and peace when I think about it.

After about a half hour of handling the contractions like this I suddenly felt the baby's head move down into the birth canal. Jon, who was still holding my hand, says that I calmly said, "Oh, not yet!" I thought that I would still have at least 3 or 4 more hours of labor and I was surprised to discover that I was already ready to push. A few contractions and pushes later and I felt something crowning. I thought it was the head but it turned out to be my bag of waters. With my other babies I've always been in the water when my water broke and so I never realized how much water there is! After it broke I reached up and could feel the baby's head -- and was frustrated that it was still pretty far up-- but three contractions later his head was out! And with the next contraction the rest of him slid out into Jon's arms.

It was a really sweet experience for Jon to "catch" this little baby. He said that as soon he saw that it was a boy he felt a voice whisper "Abraham" and he knew that was what this little boy's name was. We'd never even considered the name before and so when Jon asked me what I thought of the name "Abraham" I was really confused. Yet after hearing his experience and basking in this little boy's spirit for a day the name just felt really right. It was like he came with a name tag and wanted to make sure we read it!

I have to admit that the word that best describes how I felt when I held Abraham for the first time is -- shock. I just couldn't believe that he was already there. All day long I'd tried to convince myself that I wasn't really in labor and so it just seemed so surreal to me that he was actually really there... in my arms. It was also a little surreal because he was covered, and I mean covered, in vernix. He couldn't even open his eyes it was so thick on his face. He looked like a little white polar bear! Yet the midwife reassured us that babies who are born early often have lots of vernix. And the amazing thing is that we didn't wipe or wash any of it off and within an hour after birth his body had re-absorbed most it! It was pretty amazing and made his skin super soft.

After the birth we waited for my placenta to be ready to come out. Yet after about 35 minutes I hadn't had any cramping or contractions that indicated that it was ready to release. The midwife and her assistant tried pulling (gently) on the umbilical cord and massaging my uterus to see if they could encourage it to come, but it wouldn't. The midwife tried a wide range of techniques to try to get the placenta to detach from the uterine wall but nothing worked and she was concerned about being too aggressive with it as she didn't want parts of it to rip off and cause me to hemorrhage. After about an hour of trying to get the placenta to detach I could see in the midwife's face that she was really concerned. She said that it was really rare to see a placenta behave the way mine was. I asked, "Are we going to the hospital?" She said that we might have to because my membranes weren't releasing at all and that I might need a fairly serious procedure to get it all out in one piece. I actually felt a lot of peace about having to go the hospital and was willing to do what ever I needed to do. The midwife said she'd try again but asked Jon if he would give me a priesthood blessing first. Jon gave me a blessing and in it I was told that I would be able release, that everyone present would have the wisdom and knowledge to know what should be done, and that my placenta would come out whole and complete. After the blessing the midwife tried again to get my membranes to release but this time my body gave two big contractions (the first it had done since the baby was born) and the placenta slid out--in one complete piece. The midwife was astonished and we all just stared at each other.

We knew we had just witnessed a miracle.

After further inspection the midwife said that my placenta was completely intact and that she didn't think that any membranes had stayed inside me. She didn't think I needed to go to the hospital. I'd been prepared and willing to go, but it was so nice not to have to! The midwife was still concerned though that I might hemorrhage and so she gave me some medicine to help prevent it and watched me really carefully. The second part of the miracle has been that I've hardly had any bleeding during my postpartum recovery, which is remarkable considering what my placenta went through! It has been such a testimony to me of the power of priesthood blessings. I know that without that blessing things may have turned out much differently.

Afterwards the midwives got us cleaned up and tucked into bed (which in my opinion is the best part of giving birth-- having people take care of you!) Abraham nursed for the first time and chomped down like a champ. I'd forgotten what a sweet experience it is to feel little lips tugging at your breast for the first time. There is nothing sweeter. After we were done nursing Abraham had his newborn assessment, which he passed with flying colors!

After the assessment I got in the shower to clean up. As I rubbed soap over my belly I couldn't help but think how strange it was that just earlier that morning, in the same shower, I'd rubbed soap over a full, pregnant belly. Now it was empty. I thought to myself, "Wow, where did it all go!" and the then the phrase "He is not here" pierced my heart and I found myself remembering another part from our "The Gift of Giving Life" book. In her essay "Birth in Remembrance of Him" Robyn Allgood writes,

"The Atonement was not complete until after Christ voluntarily suffered and then demonstrated His power over the grave by rising from the dead. As the women approach His tomb, they said to each other:

Who shall roll us away the stone from the door of the sepulchre? And when they looked, they saw that the stone was rolled away: for it was very great. And entering into the sepulchre they saw a young man . . . and he saith unto them, Be not affrighted: Ye seek Jesus of Nazareth, which was crucified: he is risen; he is not here; behold the place where they laid him. (Mark 16:3-6)

The empty tomb symbolizes the power of Christ and new life through the Atonement. It symbolizes joy and wonder and even possesses mysterious significance. In like manner, the mother’s empty womb symbolizes the power of creation made possible through our Heavenly Father. It is a sacred event as is the Atonement and Resurrection of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. It symbolizes physical life offered to a spiritual being. It offers joy, wonder and mysterious significance. Mysterious because it is easy to ask, “How is this done?” The only answer can be through God, through His infinite wisdom and power."

Just like Jesus left his tomb empty when he rose again, so did my little boy leave my womb empty when he was born. The symbolism between birth and the atonement is so incredible and as I pondered on that phrase "He is not here" I realized what a miraculous thing I had just been a part of. I'd just given one of God's precious sons his mortal body. A body that, because of Christ's resurrection, would live eternally and had the potential to become a God. The full magnitude of that knowledge has overwhelmed me and I over the last several days I've found myself looking in awe at my deflated belly.

"He is not here".

No, he isn't because I'm holding him in my arms

and what a blessing that is.

Let Me Introduce You To...

2011-11-11T19:34:00.000-08:00

Abraham Bay

Born two weeks "early"!

on Thursday, 11-10-11

@ 7:57 PM

6 lbs 15 oz (smaller than my others by almost 2 lbs!)

20 3/4 inches

And practically perfect in every way.

We are a little tired (mom, dad and baby) and
a little thrilled beyond what we can handle (Asher and Rose)
but we are just loving every moment with this new little boy.

Life is sweet.

Really sweet.

Egyptus

2011-11-07T07:04:00.000-08:00

The Egyptian goddess Hathor greeting Queen Nefatiri (Image Source)

Abraham 1: 23-24

There are two women named Egyptus mentioned in the Book of Abraham, the wife of Ham and Ham's daughter. In order to clarify which woman I talking about I will designate the wife of Ham as Egyptus (W) for "wife of Ham" and the other Egyptus (D) for "daughter of Ham." Hopefully that will make things more clear.

Background:

After the great flood Noah and his family, which included his wife, three sons and three daughter-in-laws, began to spread over the earth and multiply and replenish it (Genesis 9: 17). One of Noah's sons, Ham, became the Father of Cannan (Genesis 9:18). Yet later on Ham found Noah drunk and he,

"...saw the nakedness of his father, and told his two brethren without. And Shem and Japheth took a garment, and laid it upon both their shoulders, and went backward, and covered the nakedness of their father; and their faces were backward, and they saw not their father’s nakedness." (Genesis 9:22-23)

Because of Ham's actions he and his posterity were "cursed" and denied the right to hold or administer the priesthood (Genesis 9:24-29).

Facts About Them:

Egyptus (W)

She was married to Ham, one of Noah's three sons (Abraham 1:23);

She was one of the eight souls (and one of the four women) who boarded the ark and was saved from the flood;

She bore four sons, Chush, Mizraim, Phut, and Canaan who because their father Ham "saw the nakedness of his father (Noah)" (Genesis 9:20-27) were "cursed", meaning they were unable to hold the priesthood;

She bore at least one daughter, who was also named Egyptus (Abraham 1:24);

Egyptus (D)

She was the daughter of Ham and Egyptus (Abraham 1:24);

She discovered the land of Egypt which, when she found it was under water (Abraham 1:24);

She settled her sons in the land of Egypt (Abraham 1:24);

Her oldest son was named Pharaoh and he established the first government in Egypt. He "... being a righteous man, established his kingdom and judged his people wisely and justly all his days, seeking earnestly to imitate that order established by the fathers in the first generations, in the days of the first patriarchal reign, even in the reign of Adam... " (Abraham 1:26)

Pharaoh had been blessed by Noah "with the blessings of the earth, and with the blessings of wisdom." Yet because he was from Ham's lineage he was cursed "as pertaining to the Priesthood" and did not have the right to claim any priesthood authority (Abraham 1:26).

Speculations About Them:

It is important to note that whenever the scriptures speak of a "curse" upon the lineage of Ham they do not refer to skin color or to race. We don't fully understand the circumstances that surrounded the story of Noah's drunkenness and Ham's subsequent punishment. It is likely that the garment referred to in the Genesis account had special religious significance and represented Noah's priesthood authority. Apparently Ham did something significantly wicked by seeing "the nakedness of his father" that he lost his right to hold and administer the priesthood as did his posterity (source). When the scriptures speak of the "curse of Ham" they are referring to Ham's lineage being unable to administer the Priesthood, and not a specific skin color or race.

Three of Joseph Smith's 1835 pre-publication manuscript of the Book of Abraham show that the name "Egyptus" was first translated as "Zeptah". (source) This name is interesting because in Egyptian Zeptah can be translated as "Daughter- of- Ptah", Ptah being the Egyptian name for Noah. If this name was correct then it would make Egyptus (D) the equivalent of Hathor the Egyptian goddess of love, beauty, music, motherhood, childbirth, and joy, who was said to be the daughter of "Ptah" (Noah) and was also the mother of Re, the first King of Egypt (source). Many of the stories of Hathor are remarkably similar to the story of Egyptus and it is very probable that the deity of Hathor evolved from her story. The picture at the right is an illustration of how Hathor, she was commonly portrayed as a cow (thus the horns).

My Thoughts:

The story of Eygptus has fascinated me for a long time. First, I think it is awesome that we know the name of ONE of the four women who were aboard the ark! That is something we don't often mention. Also, I have a soft spot in my heart for Egyptian history. I had a teacher in Middle School who loved Egypt and I've been fascinated by it ever since. Yet, I'd never spent the time to dig deeper into the Egyptus story until recently. When I started to do research I discovered that it was much more complicated than I realized. So for a better understanding I turned to the writing of Hugh Nibley, a world famous scholar of ancient scripture. I have to admit that I really only understood about a third of what he said, but what I did understand I found fascinating.

The first thing that I gleaned from him were the similarities between the story of Egyptus (D) as told in the Book of Abraham and the story of the Egyptian Goddess Hathor. I won't dive into all the details Hugh Nibley gave (which you can read here if you are motivated) but basically their two stories are pretty much the same. It was really fascinating to me discover that the Egyptian Goddess was modeled off of a real woman. I love to find those moments when history and scripture merge and support each other!

The other interesting thing that I discovered in Hugh Nibley's writings has to do with "Facsimile 3" from the Book of Abraham (pictured below).

Fascimile 3 from The Book of Abraham

Before I start explaining how this facsimile relates to the story of Egytptus I am going to give you the opportunity to feel like a real Egyptologist. First, without opening your Pearl of Great Price and reading the description of the facsimile I want you to take a good look at the picture above and see if you can identify, based on their dress and body shape, which two characters are female.

Did you do it?

Okay, now I want you to scroll up to the picture I posted of Hathor (in the "Speculations About Them" section) take a good look at how she is dressed and then scroll back down and look at the facsimile. Can you figure out which one is Hathor?

Pretty obvious right? It is figure #2... the cow horn head dress sort of gives it away. The other figure that is obviously female is figure #4.

This is where things start to get interesting, because in Joseph Smith's translation of the facsimile he tells us that the man sitting on the throne is Abraham who is dressed in the power of the priesthood. Then Joseph specifies figure #2 as being "King Pharaoh" and figure #4 as being "Prince of Pharaoh". This interpretation seems sort of strange, considering that both look female, and makes it appear like Joseph Smith really had no clue what he was talking about when he translated the facsimile. Yet Hugh Nibley explained all this, he said:

"Anyone wishing to demolish Joseph Smith's interpretation of Facsimile 3 with the greatest economy of effort need look no further than his designating as "King Pharaoh" and "Prince of Pharaoh" two figures so obviously female that a three-year-old child will not hesitate to identify them as such. Why then have Egyptologists not simply pointed to this ultimate absurdity and dismissed the case? Can it be that there is something peculiarly Egyptian about this strange waywardness that represents human beings as gods and men as women?... The two ladies in the Facsimile, figures 2 and 4, will be readily identified by any novice as the goddesses Hathor and Maat. They seem indispensable to scenes having to do with the transmission of power and authority. The spectacle of men, kings, and princes at that, dressed as women, calls for a brief notice on the fundamental issue peculiar to the Egyptians and the Book of Abraham, namely, the tension between the claims of patriarchal vs. matriarchal succession."( From "A Pioneer Mother" in Abraham in Egypt)

The two figures in the facsimile labeled "King Pharaoh" and "Prince of Pharaoh" are in fact males dressed as female figures. They are depicted this way to portrays the general confusion that Egyptians had about the patriarchal order and the tension between patriarchy and matriarchy in their society. In the Book of Abraham Abraham explains that the Egyptians came through the line of Ham, who for reasons we don't understand lost the privilege to bear and administer the priesthood. The first Pharaoh, the son of Egyptus, understood and respected this. He didn't try to take the Priesthood upon himself or to administer that which he did not have. Yet he was a righteous man and wanted his kingdom to be patterned after the manner of God. So he established a patriarchal order, patterned after Adam's, so that he might rule righteously. Yet Abraham tells us that later Pharaoh's of Egypt didn't understand this and tried to claim priesthood authority, that they didn't have, through the line of Ham and Egyptus and that they were "led away by their idolatry" (Abraham 1:27).

This is why Pharaoh is dressed like Hathor (ie. Egyptus) and the Prince of Pharaoh like another female deity in Facsimile #3. They knew that through Egyptus (D) they had access to the lineage of Ham, and thus the lineage of Noah and the priesthood, and they were trying to claim it through her. Hugh Nibley suggests that what the facsimile is trying to teach is that unlike Abraham--who in the facsimile is adorned like Osiris ( the highest Egyptian God) and is wearing a crown representing the priesthood and holding the scepter of justice and judgment in his hand-- the Pharoah and his son were lacking any real power or right to the priesthood.

Pretty cool stuff, huh?

I won't pretend and say that I really understand all of this. I am no scholar of ancient scripture and reading Hugh Nibley often makes me feel like I am reading a foreign language. Yet it is always so exciting to me to discover a new layer to the scriptures... especially the story of a woman from the scriptures!

Questions to Think About:

It is extremely rare for a country to be named after a woman. Usually countries are/were named after the person who discovered them and it is very rare that women are ever in a position to discover a new land. How do you think Egyptus (D) discovered Egypt? Why would she have been out exploring (or wandering) on her own? Why would she have settled her sons in a new land? Where was her husband?

Why do you think it is that throughout history not all of God's people have been able to hold the priesthood? For example, in the Old Testament only the Levites were able to hold and administer it. In the New Testament the Gentiles were not allowed to have it at first and even in our modern day it hasn't been until the last 30 years that all men ,regardless of race, have been able to hold the priesthood. Why do you think this is?

There are lots of things we don't know about the stories of Egyptus (W) and Egyptus (D). What sort of things would you like to know about them? What would you ask them if you got to chat with one of them for awhile?

Five Things For Friday, 22nd Edition

2011-11-04T01:00:00.000-07:00

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Sorry about not having a Five Things for Friday post last week. All THREE of our computers were being fickle, I was traveling by myself with two little kids, and I have been SO tired lately. So I am sorry the post didn't happen, but just know that if I miss a week I will always pick it back up the next week... or the next. Sometimes blogging just has to take a back seat.

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Here are my two little ragamuffins all dressed up for Halloween. They sure had a lot of fun and I was so happy with how their costumes turned out. Even though Rose's bat hat just about gave me an ulcer trying to figure out how to put together... but it finally worked out thanks to a neighbor who is a much better seamstress than me!

I've decided that my official approach to Halloween candy is going to be "let the kids binge for a whole day until it is gone." We tried rationing the candy but we got so tired of being begged and begged for another piece that we finally just told them they could just eat what was in their bags whenever they wanted but when it was gone it was gone. They ate candy non-stop for a day, which made them super wild, but now that all the candy is gone (and passed through their system) life is better. I think in the future I am not even going to try to control the madness, but just hang on tight until it is over.

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Have I mentioned I love, love, love the Relief Society station on the Mormon Channel? Every month Sister Julie Beck answers questions from women around the world and (like always) her insights are so powerful and beautiful. Last night I was listening to the latest interview about Trials and Adversity and so much of it spoke right to my heart. I also loved the one she did about Temple Covenants. If you get the chance I'd highly recommend listening to them. I know that I have learned so much!

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At least once a month I get an email or a comment from someone telling me that James E. Talmage's name is spelled wrong on my blog header. Which it is (there isn't a "d" in it). The problem is that because of how I made the header changing it is a lot of work and would require me to pretty much re-design my website. Which I don't feel up to doing. I am wondering if there is anyone out there who does web design (or who knows someone who does it) who would like re-design my blog for me in exchange for advertising and publicity on my blog. I don't want anything fancy but what I do want is a bit more than my poor design skills can manage. If you are interested, or know someone who would be interested, please let me know!

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37 weeks! That is how pregnant I am. Besides being tired and waddling like a duck (my hips still hurt sometimes) I am feeling really good. I am in awe of how my body has changed. It never ceases to amaze me how it can expand to such an unusual shape. It is beautiful. I feel round, ripe, and bursting to the seams with life. I am starting to get so excited about meeting this little person!

One of my friends, who was due two weeks before me, just had her baby last week because she came two weeks early. That really kicked me into gear and I've started in earnest getting things ready for this baby. We should be getting our home birth kit from our midwife this week (which includes things like a birth pool, towels, sanitary supplies, and emergency and resuscitation supplies) and I am excited. Having it around always makes me feel so much more ready and prepared. Though I still think I have quite awhile before this baby comes. My due date is Thanksgiving, but I'm guessing he/she won't come until December. My other two have come early or on their due date but it seems like God has thrown me a lot of curve balls this pregnancy and so I'm not counting on things being the same as my others. I trust that God has His own timetable and even though it is getting hard, I'm willing to wait for this little one to be ready for its mortal experience. Though I wouldn't mind if he/she was ready sooner rather than later :)

Hope you have a wonderful weekend!

If you want to link to your own "Five Things for Friday" post you can use the tool below to add your link. 1) Please link to the URL of your blog post and not your main blog and 2) Please include a link back here.

Give, Oh Give

2011-11-01T09:21:00.000-07:00

On Friday I had the opportunity to go a "mommy blogger" luncheon sponsored by LDS Philanthropies, the fundraising arm of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. I haven't been to very many blogging events before and it was really fun to meet some of the women I've been friends with online in "real" life. Here is a picture of all of us after the luncheon (I am third from the right on the back row). It sure made my husband feel better to see that I spend my time online with actual people and that they aren't scary, bearded men with tattoos!

At the luncheon we go to hear from Megan, whose story is featured in the widget below and on the sidebar of my blog (to hear it just un-mute the sound at the top right hand corner of the widget). She is the recipient of the Stella Oaks (the mother of Dallin H. Oaks) Horizon of Hope Scholarship for single parents at LDS Business College. The scholarship provides full tuition and books and relieves some of the huge strain on single mothers, allowing them more time to be mothers to their children and less time wondering how they are going to make ends meat.

Megan's story is really remarkable and as I listened to her speak about the challenges she and the other single parents at the college face my heart was really touched. I have several friends who, for a variety of reasons, are now raising their children by themselves and I know how much they struggle. I realized that too often it takes some huge natural disaster or life threatening disease to get prompt me to donate money to a cause. It is easy to overlook the people who need help who are right in my own backyard. Yet aren't they the ones God expects me to help the most?

I think so.

So for the month of November I am teaming up with dozens of other "mommy bloggers" to raise money for the Stella Oaks Horizon of Hope Scholarship. Our goal is to raise enough money to provide scholarships for 4 single parents, but the representative from LDS Business College told us that they wish they had the funds to provide 45 scholarships because the need is so great. Wouldn't it be wonderful if we could do that!

I hope that you will take a moment to listen to Megan's story and that you will consider donating. 100% of your donation will go straight to the scholarship fund and so every little bit helps. A $5 donation would be wonderful! A $500 donation would be wonderful! Give whatever you can and know that it DOES make a difference.

Also, please if you have your own blog will you consider putting Megan's widget on the sidebar of your blog (which you can get by clicking on the "share" button) or even better writing your own post about it.

This is truly a worthwhile cause and it is so much more than just a scholarship. The representative from LDS Business College told us that one of the main things this scholarship does is help women who feel they have "failed" in everything discover that they have worth in the eyes of society... and in the eyes of God... and you can't put a price tag on that.

Calling All International Readers

2011-10-26T19:33:00.000-07:00

I have a special favor to ask of my international (aka. outside of the US) readers.

For the last few months I've been feeling prompted to do a series about Latter-day Saint women from around the world and how the gospel is growing in their countries. I received and email a few months ago from a reader in Finland talking about how since the dedication of the temple there they have seen increased interest and respect for the church. Her email reminded me that there are now more members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints outside of the US than there are inside and I couldn't help but think about how different LDS women's experiences must be all over the world. Call me nosy, but I would love to get a little glimpse into your lives!

I know that there is a great big handful of you from the UK, Canada, Australia, South Africa, Germany, Denmark, Finland, Philippines, India, Brazil, and other exotic places that read my blog. What I'd like to ask is that if you live outside of the US, even if you aren't a "native" of that country, if you'd consider answering some of the questions I will send to you and/or writing a guest post for my blog about what the spiritual climate is in your country, how the Church is growing, and your experiences as an LDS woman. PLEASE don't be let the language barrier stop you. I am a good editor and don't mind touching up the grammar and spelling or helping you in any way you need. I'm not planning on doing the posts for awhile (probably not till after the baby comes) so you'd have plenty of time to put something together... and it doesn't have to be long.

If you are interested either leave me a comment or email me (heatherlady at gmail.com) with which country you are from and your email address and I will contact you soon.

Thanks! I can't wait to hear from you.

All Violence is Violence Against Women

2011-10-25T08:20:00.000-07:00

Image Source

I have always been really sensitive to violence. When I was young it wasn't uncommon for me to run to my room sobbing because of things I'd seen in a movie or on TV. Even now when I read or see something violent it stays with me for days, clinging to my mind, and eating away at parts of my heart. There is nothing enjoyable to me in violence, even when I know it is "pretend". I thought that as I got older I would get thicker skin and that violence wouldn't bother me so much. I haven't. In fact, I think that my ability to watch any sort of violence has grown increasingly less... especially since I've become a mother.

In college I worked for the Women's Research Institute at BYU for four years helping a professor research peace education programs and women's involvement in peace. It was amazing to me to discover that many of the world's largest peace movements and education programs were started and are run by women, specifically mothers. I've pondered on this a lot the last few years and I've realized the reason that women through out the world are so active in peace movements is because women understand the true value of human life.

If you were to intentionally destroy the Mona Lisa you'd in essence be destroying a part of Leonardo da Vinci. You'd be erasing forever the strokes his hand painted, the workings of his mind, part of his history, and his vision for the world. In a similar way every time a human life is destroyed it destroys a part of the woman who created that life. Just like the artist is the only one who can comprehend the true value of his masterpiece. So does a woman truly comprehend the full value of human life. She has given parts of herself to create it, she shed her blood to bring it to the light, she feed it and nurtured it with her body, and she invested years of her life teaching, training, loving, and shaping it.

Human life is woman's masterpiece.

The degree to which we honor and protect a masterpiece shows the value we give to the master who created it. For example, the Mona Lisa hangs in a beautiful museum, encased in glass and protective coverings, and surrounded by guards who are dedicated to its preservation. We go to a lot of effort to preserve that painting because we know that it is "one of a kind" and that it is irreplaceable. If anything was to happen to it the world would mourn deeply, not only because we'd have lost something of unique value, but because we'd have lost a part of the artist who created it. In the same way the way we honor and protect human life shows the value we give to those who created it. President Thomas S. Monson has said,

"One cannot forget mother and remember God. One cannot remember mother and forget God. Why? Because these two sacred persons, God and mother, partners in creation, in love, in sacrifice, in service, are as one." (From "Behold Thy Mother")

Women are co-creators with God and a society that is seeped in or accepting of violence-- real or pretend-- is one that at its core does not value or honor women... or God.

I realize that because we live in a wicked world that we may not be able to escape war in our day and age but I'd like to think that we could be raising our children to value and appreciate the true value of all human life. When World War I began Emmeline B. Wells, then serving as the General Relief Society President, was concerned about how war would affect the women and the homes of the sisters. She counseled them,

"... guard your little ones; do not permit them to imbibe the spirit of intolerance or hatred to any nation or to any people; keep firearms out of their hands, do not allow them to play at war nor to find amusement in imitating death in battle... Teach the peaceable things of the kingdom [and] look after the needy more diligently than ever." (Daughters in My Kingdom, page 64).

The amount of violence we tolerate, accept, and perpetuate in our society today scares me. It breaks my heart to watch the news and see the way in which human life is so carelessly disposed of and makes me nervous for the future of women in the world. In a similar way my heart aches to my core when I see young men playing violent video games or young women enjoying violent movies. How can destroying life-- even in jest-- ever be considered fun?

I think that there is more of a need today than in Sister Wells' time for us to "teach the peaceable things of the kingdom" in our homes and in our societies. Just imagine the power that would come if women were united in their dedication to the sanctity of life and to peace; and imagine what sort of world we would have if MEN were just as dedicated to life and peace.

Because when it comes right down to it... all violence is violence against women.

Five Things For Friday, 21st Edition

2011-10-21T00:40:00.000-07:00

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Last fall we didn't have time to carve pumpkins and so I ended up just throwing one of them out in our garden. In the spring all of the seeds from that pumpkin took root and I had HUNDREDS of little pumpkin plants all over my garden. I transplanted about 20 of the little pumpkins and planted them at my husband's uncle's house (he had lots of room for them). They did really well and all summer I have been excited to have some pumpkins for Halloween. Well, a few days ago we went and harvested all them and I was shocked to discover that we ended up with 74 pumpkins... all from that one pumpkin I threw out in the garden! It made me realize that when God promised Abraham that his posterity would be as numerous as the sands of the sea, that He wasn't joking. If my one little pumpkin can produce that many new little pumpkins from only 20 seeds just imagine how many pumpkins I would have gotten if I'd transplanted ALL of the seedlings I pulled out of my garden! That would be quite the pumpkin posterity.

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Speaking of posterity... when I was pregnant for the the fist time I remember that towards the end of my pregnancy my midwife asked me, "Do you have room for this baby?" I thought it was a strange question and didn't know how to respond. She clarified by asking, "Have you taken the time to make space in your home and in your heart for this baby?" Even though the question was asked years ago I've been thinking about it again this pregnancy. I've been so busy taking care of the needs of two other demanding children that, if it wasn't for the fact that this baby likes to kick my kidneys, I'm afraid that I'd forget all about him/her. Last week I actually had a bit of an emotional breakdown and I realized that I needed to make room-- physically and emotionally-- for this baby. So I've been making time each night to have little "chats" with my baby and I've discovered that there is a very beautiful and powerful spirit dwelling within me-- who is very prepared to come to this earth. I also I spent all last Saturday setting up the baby's bed, pulling out and washing all the newborn clothes, and re-painting an old dresser to put the baby's things in. The dresser turned out beautiful (if I do say so myself) and it is amazing how knowing that I have a physical space for this baby has really eased my fears. Now every time that I walk past the baby's little bed I feel a sweet assurance sweep over me that, "YES" there is room here for you little one... in my house and in my heart.

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Image source

Oh, I have so much to say about this cartoon... it touches on something close to my heart... and there will probably be a whole post on it soon. What these three women-- Ellen Johnson Sirleaf, Leymah Gbowee (both from Liberia) and Tawakkul Karman (from Afghanistan)-- have done to bring peace to their nations is awe inspiring. PBS just broadcast a documentary entitled "Pray the Devil Back to Hell" which highlights the struggle in Liberia and the role that women played in bringing about that peace (watch the trailer here). Seeing what these women did is incredible and just reminds me of the unique potential that women have to create peace. There have only been 12 other women awarded the Nobel Peace Prize since it was first awarded in 1901 and so I can't help but think that it is about time that more women were recognized for their work and dedication to the sanctity of life. Woohoo! Like I said... more on this later.

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My dad sent me this video and it really boggled my mind to think that the technology is out there to do things like this! Some of it seems so crazy. Yet, I remember having a conversation a few years ago about how crazy it would be to be able to have the Internet on your phone and now that is almost standard issue. Things that were "Science Fiction" just 10 years ago are now all over the place and I don't doubt that in the near future our world will include a lot of these sort of gadgets. It still just seems sort of crazy.

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We launched the new website for our book "The Gift of Giving Life: Rediscovering the Divine Nature of Pregnancy and Birth" this week! In addition to having excerpts and information about the book we have also moved our blog over there as well. If you were subscribed to the old blog please make sure you update your feed so that you get our new posts. We are starting a new format with our blog and each of the authors is going to do a guest post each month, as well as schedule guest posts and post birth stories. We will also be posting stories and essays we received but were unable to put in the book due to space constraints. It should be pretty wonderful. This week it was my turn to do the post and to introduce myself I wrote a little about my journey to motherhood and how I got interested in natural birth, home birth and doula work. I hope you'll take the time to jump over and read it... especially if you are new to my blog.

Also, if you are interested in doing a guest post or would like to share your birth story on The Gift of Giving Life blog please let me know!

Wow, this was sort of a birth-filled post, guess you know what's been on my mind! Hope you have a great weekend!

If you want to link to your own "Five Things for Friday" post you can use the tool below to add your link. 1) Please link to the URL of your blog post and not your main blog and 2) Please include a link back here.

How Holy is the Sabbath Day?

2011-10-18T12:46:00.000-07:00

Originally posted October 19, 2009

I am really proud of my husband.

He spent all of last semester working on a design competition with several other students at his University. The project wasn't for any of his classes, it was something he took on in addition to his regular school work and his graduate research. He and his teammates worked really hard on their project and as a result they won the State design competition and got to go to Florida to compete in the National competition--- all expenses paid. He was thrilled.

A few months later I checked "Chariots of Fire" out from the library and Jon and I watched it one Friday evening. The movie is about Eric Liddell, the "Flying Scotsman", who refused to run the 100 meter dash (the one everyone thought he would win) in the 1924 Paris Olympics because it was scheduled on Sunday. Liddell was a committed Christian and refused to run on the Sabbath despite the pressure he got to do so. Instead he ran the 400 meter, one of his worst events. Right before he ran it one of his American competitors came up and put a paper in his hand with 1 Samuel 2:30 on it which said, "Those who honor me, I will honor". He ran with that paper in his hand and... well... I won't ruin the ending for you.

This story really impressed Jon and I and made us re-evaluate our dedication to our own beliefs and faith. Would we have been able to do what Liddell did?

Then just a few days after we watched the movie, Jon was looking up the schedule for the conference he was going to attend to find out when he would be presenting his design... it was scheduled for Sunday.

He turned to me and said, "Heather, I can't do it. I really can't present on Sunday."

Me, being the supportive and righteous wife that I am, said, "Well, why not! God won't mind this one time. You've worked so hard and you deserve to do this."

But he stuck to what he felt was right. He told his teammates (all of them are also Mormons) that he couldn't present on Sunday. They were understanding and said that they would present for him. But they felt that since he had put so much work in to it that he still deserved to attend the conference. So we went to Florida and he didn't present on Sunday, instead we went to visit his aunt and uncle. I kept hoping that maybe because he had made such a big sacrifice that God would bless his team and they would win.... didn't happen... but they still did a really good job. Later Jon had the opportunity to meet the president of the organization and told her that next year they shouldn't have the student competitions on Sunday. She said she'd think about it.

I really admire my husband's decision to keep the Sabbath day holy because, if the truth be known, if I had been in his position... I would have presented on Sunday.

It makes me feel sort of bad to admit this, but I probably would not have given the fact that the presentation was on Sunday a second thought. I would have easily justified it... I'm on vacation... I've worked so hard... It isn't that big of a deal... God won't mind this one time... Everyone else is going to do it and they are Mormons too.

But watching my husband stand his ground, especially when all the others on his team were of the same faith, really made me re-evaluate my feeling about the Sabbath day.

Do I really understand why God ask us to keep the Sabbath day holy?

How "holy" does he expect us to keep it? Is it up for personal interpretation?

How do you stand up for what is right, when everyone else is of the same faith as you, without sounding "self righteous"?

These are the questions that have been floating around in my mind, and I am still searching for answers.

What do you think? Would you have presented?

Five Things For Friday, 20th Edition

2011-10-14T01:00:00.000-07:00

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My kids are so excited about Halloween. This is the first year that they have been old enough to understand what it is all about and they can hardly wait. I don't know what got them so excited about it but for the last month Asher has been asking me (at least 4 or 5 times a day) if it is Halloween yet. I finally had to make him a paper chain counting down the days so that he could see we still have quite awhile. He also really wants me to finish his Halloween costume (he wants to be a pirate and Rose wants to be a bat) and several days ago informed me, "Mom, I'll watch Rosie and we will be really good and you sew my pirate hat right now." I wish the being really good part would happen so that I could get them done. But maybe I shouldn't get them done too soon or they will be worn to pieces before Halloween even gets here!

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This week I had someone contact me about Christmas programs. She was wondering if I had written or knew of any programs featuring women from the scriptures that might be appropriate for their Christmas party. The only program I am familiar with is "The Women Who Knew Jesus" script. I've seen it performed before and it is beautiful. It highlights six women from the scriptures, several of whom we don't know anything about at all like Mary's Mother and the Inn Keeper's Wife, and it is powerful... not to mention easy to perform. I thought I'd pass the link along in case there are other of you who are looking for programs for Christmas parties. If you happen to know of any other scripts featuring women from the scriptures PLEASE let me know. There is a shortage of them, which I guess means that someday I will have to write one!

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About a year ago I wrote a guest post for our Gift of Giving Life blog about how midwifery used to be a calling in the LDS church and how women used to be called by General Authorities to be midwives and were set apart for life. There is going to be an expanded version in "The Gift of Giving Life" book but this post gives the basics and it is really interesting information if you've never heard it before.

Anyway, I was excited to discover that my post has inspired a new website called "Birthing in Zion". The organizer of the website said that after reading my post she was inspired to create a directory of LDS birth providers (OBs, midwives, doulas, child birth educators, etc...) all over the world. Her hope is that eventually there will be a listing for every stake in the church and that women will be able to find care providers that share their beliefs and see birth as an innately spiritual experience. I am really excited about this and can't wait to see where it goes. In about a week they already have 269 "likes" on their Facebook page and the directory should be posted on their new website soon. If you are LDS and provide birth services make sure you send in your information to them. This is going to be a great resource!

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Question. When do you find time to say your morning prayers? I am really struggling with finding time to pray and am just wondering what works for everyone else. Saying them right when I wake up doesn't work for me because I am usually awakened way too early by little ragamuffins and my mornings are always so busy. I'd LOVE to hear any suggestions.

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This year is the 400th anniversary of the King James Version of the Bible. In honor of this anniversary BYUtv is going to be broadcasting a 3-part series called "Fires of Faith: The Coming Forth of the King James Bible" which documents the lives of the men and women who sacrificed to preserve the Bible. The first episode airs on October 16th at 6 PM. I am really excited to watch this. We don't have BYUtv but I am hoping that we will be able to watch it online. If not I'll just have to have someone record it for me.

Also, I was really impressed by this post which gives ideas about to teach your children the basics of the Reformation. Forget teaching the kids... I need to learn this myself! It is sad to me that this part of history was left out of my High School education! I don't really know much about this at all and am excited to learn more.

That is it! I hope you all have a wonderful weekend!

If you want to link to your own "Five Things for Friday" post you can use the tool below to add your link. 1) Please link to the URL of your blog post and not your main blog and 2) Please include a link back here.