Past News: February 26, 2022

There is never enough time in our days! One things we are involved in is Humanitarian Donations from the Church. We are the representatives of the Church here in Albuquerque in the process that organizations go through to receive Humanitarian Donations from the Church. It has been eye opening to see all that the Church does to help alleviate need. AND there are so many amazing people and organizations who help the down trodden. It is such a blessing to meet them and witness all that they do!

We met with one organization to learn how the Church could assist as Afghan refugees arrive in Albuquerque. This was the beginning of a new grant for them. After we met with them, we got to work to figure out how much money would be involved. We then submitted the recommendation to our boss in SLC. It went up the chain and received approval. Now we are in the process of fulfilling it. There is cash involved and items from the Bishops’ Storehouse. We have worked with an organization that helps asylum seekers as they arrive here from El Paso, TX. We have ongoing involvement in the re-application of many other donation requests from other entities.  There is so much that the Church does just here in ABQ and multiply that by every city in the world and it is mind boggling! Our boss in Salt Lake City has been involved in a project to bring water and electricity to a Navajo reservation town in Utah. We are always looking for more opportunities to help here in our area. 

Another project we have been exploring and would like to get going is a project to video the oldest members of the Native American Pueblos and Reservations to record their stories before they are lost forever. Knowing who you are and the stories of your past help a person to face the challenges of life – strengthens emotional resilience and self-reliance. So that is part of the reason for our effort. Along those lines, Shelley has been able to create a family tree for one member of a Pueblo close by. 

 

We have visited several of the Native American communities. (I think it was one of our trips on a back road to one of them that did a number on our car. :-[ ) We've been invited to speak in several of the Native American units of the Church - their membership is so small that they welcome anyone they can get to speak :-) . When we went to speak in Alamo, a Navajo branch of the Church, the branch president invited us to his home for a late lunch after. Alamo is 2 ½ hours from ABQ so it was a welcome invitation.  His home is on a huge ranch. What an amazing place! It was a gathering place for ancient inhabitants. There is a huge rock outcrop on the property, probably 150 feet high, called Council Rock. It reminded us of King Benjamin’s gathering place where the people gathered to be taught. It is obvious that this was a going place in the past. The family has found hundreds of artifacts, including the stones for grinding corn, arrowheads, pieces of pottery and tools. It is located on a spring of water and there are tall trees all around (not that common in some parts of New Mexico). It is a beautiful place. We were blown away by it all.

 

Succeed In School Training

We haven't been very good about writing in our blog. I finally figured out how to get back in after so many months of being AWOL, so I will try to be more regular about posting.  Our weeks are always full to the brim and we are having wonderful blessings and opportunities. 

This last week we had visitors from Church Headquarters.  Two Seminary and Institute employees and a member of the Priesthood and Family Committee came to Albuquerque to train on a tool that has been approved for use on the Native American lands. It's called "Succeed in School". We have been working with a set of sister missionaries assigned to two of the Native American units in our mission as they learn how to use this tool to bless the people in these areas, Our Mission President and the Stake President over these areas joined in the training. It's actually a resource that can be accessed by anyone on the Gospel Library app under Life Help > Education.  But because it is being used on Native American lands, we can get this kind of support from Church Headquarters for implementing it here. It is exciting to be a part of this pioneering effort. 

The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints has so many wonderful resources to bless the lives of God's children. The Lord and His Church are concerned about all aspects of our lives and thus have created resources to assist us in overcoming life's challenges. Being able to care for and overcome our own challenges allows us to reach out in love to serve others.  We can then better keep the second great commandment to love our neighbor as ourself.

 

A Visit From Elder Neil L. Anderson

We have had an amazing two days of feasting. We have been blessed with a mission tour by Elder Neil L. Anderson of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, Elder Pieper, President of the Southwest Area and Elder Vest, Area Seventy for our area. The big take away for me is the importance of a firm foundation of faith in our Savior, Jesus Christ, for ourselves and for our families. Our testimony of the Savior and His divinity and ability to atone for the sins of all the world will be our biggest test in the future. This was a big part of Elder Anderson’s message. He counseled us to start preparing now by spending time building our relationship with Christ first by studying very thoroughly the New Testament along with our study of the Book of Mormon. He invited us to start with 5 scriptures about Christ from the New Testament that you really believe and then memorize them. The 2nd thing is to keep a great love for the Book of Mormon because it testifies of Jesus Christ. It is full of amazing sermons about His atonement. He then invited us to find 5 scriptures in the Book of Mormon as well and memorize them. With efforts to memorize, our faith will be elevated. 

Elder Anderson warned us that we are going to have to do things we haven’t had to do before in order to stay strong and not slide off the path. We are living in a time that will require of all of us to build strong faith in Christ so that whatever surrounds us won’t pull us off the path. We need to be “converted to the Lord and united to the Church” (3 Nephi 28:23;)

This message of the importance of faith in Jesus Christ was reiterated by each of the speakers. 

Elder Vest spoke about an experience he and his wife had teaching an activity age group of children about the Atonement of Jesus Christ from Preach My Gospel pages 51 – 52. They then had them teach it to each other. Most of them had a very difficult time doing it. The same was true of the missionaries that came into his mission when he presided in the New York Syracuse Mission. They didn't know very much about the Atonement of Jesus Christ. He asked the question: What do we and our children know most about? Do we know about Star Wars, Harry Potter, or Pokemon more than about Jesus Christ? Why is it important? Why does it matter? Because without Him we have and are nothing. And because every good thing comes from Him. Another reason is found in Helaman 5:12 "And now, my sons, remember, remember that it is upon the rock of our Redeemer, who is Christ, the Son of God, that ye must build your foundation; that when the devil shall send forth his mighty winds, yea, his shafts in the whirlwind, yea, when all his hail and his mighty storm shall beat upon you, it shall have no power over you to drag you down to the gulf of misery and endless wo, because of the rock upon which ye are built, which is a sure foundation, a foundation whereon if men build they cannot fall.” This passionate love of Jesus Christ will protect us. 

He quoted from this scripture in Deuteronomy 6:7 “And thou shalt teach [the Lord’s words] diligently unto thy children, and shalt talk of them when thou sittest in thine house and when thou walkest by the way, and when thou liest down, and when thou risest up” He gave a modern adaptation of that scripture: Thou shalt teach these things when thou drivest in the car, when thou eatest dinner, when thou art on social media. (he gave examples of normal and natural ways to do this - not preachy) He also quoted President Russell M. Nelson from last General Conference who said, “With frightening speed, a testimony that is not nourished daily “by the good word of God” can crumble. Thus, the antidote to Satan’s scheme is clear: we need daily experiences worshiping the Lord and studying His gospel. I plead with you to let God prevail in your life. Give Him a fair share of your time. As you do, notice what happens to your positive spiritual momentum.” (President Russell M. Nelson, "The Power of Spiritual Momentum", General Conference, April 2022)

Our Testimony is that Jesus Christ is the author and finisher of our faith. Without Him we would be doomed to misery. He is the source of all that is good and light and true. We are so blessed to be serving in His kingdom.